t 

? 

OCT  21  1924  ^ 


Division  BS  2.7 /S' 


Section  T4-  b 


CHRIST  PRE-EMINENT 


CHRIST 

PRE-EMINENT 

Studies  in  the  Epistle  to  the  Colossians 

By 

y 

W.  H.  GRIFFITH  THOMAS,  D.D. 


Author  of  Devotional  Commentaries  on  The  Book  of  Genesis 
and  The  Epistle  to  the  Romans,  The  Apostle  Peter, 
Methods  of  Bible  Study,  Grace  and  Power,  The  Holy 
Spirit  of  God,  The  Power  of  Peace,  The  Prayers  of 
St.  Paul,  The  Christian  Life  and  How  to  Live 
It,  Life  Abiding  and  Abounding,  The  Acts 
of  the  Apostles,  Here  Am  I,  Mending 
Their  Nets,  Must  Christians  Sin? 

Some  Tests  of  Old  Testament 
Criticism,  What  About  Evolu¬ 
tion?  Evolution  and  the 
Supernatural 


Chicago 

THE  BIBLE  INSTITUTE  COLPORTAGE  ASS’N 

826  North  La  Salle  Street 


Copyright,  1923 

BY 

THE  BIBLE  INSTITUTE  COLPORTAGE  ASSOCIATION 

OF  CHICAGO 


Printed  in  the  United  States  of  Americo 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  PAGE 

I.  Introduction  ------  7 

II.  Personal  Associations,  1  :l-4  15 

III.  The  Apostolic  Message,  1 :5-8  -  -  21 

IV.  An  Apostle's  Prayer,  1 :9-12  25 

V.  God  the  Father,  1 :12,  13  -  -  32 

VI.  The  Divine  Son,  1:14-17  39 

VII.  The  Divine  Redeemer,  1:18-20  -  -  45 

VIII.  The  Great  Redemption,  1 :21-23  -  50 

IX.  The  Christian  Minister,  1 :24,  25  -  54 

X.  The  Christian  Ministry,  1:26-29  -  58 

XI.  Spiritual  Concern,  2:1-5  -  -  -  66 

XII.  Peril  and  Protection,  2:6- 10a  71 

XIII.  The  Believer's  Safety,  2 :  10b- 15  -  -  77 

XIV.  The  Twofold  Appeal,  2:16-19  82 

XV.  Facts  and  Factors,  2 :20-23  -  -  -  88 

XVI.  Resurrection  Power,  3:1-4  92 

XVII.  Heaven  and  Earth,  3:5-11  -  -  -  95 

XVIII.  The  Soul's  Dress,  3:12-17  -  -  -  99 

XIX.  The  Christian  Home,  3:18 — 4:1  -  -  104 

XX.  An  Apostle's  Advice,  4:2-6  -  -  108 

XXI.  An  Apostle  and  His  Friends,  4:7-17  -  112 

XXII.  Secrets  of  Living,  4:12  -  -  -  118 

XXIII.  A  Look  Back . 122 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2019  with  funding  from 
Princeton  Theological  Seminary  Library 


https://archive.org/details/christpreeminentOOthom 


CHRIST  PRE-EMINENT 


CHAPTER  I 
Introduction 

EACH  Epistle  of  St.  Paul  has  its  own  special  char¬ 
acteristics,  and  when  they  are  all  put  together 
they  sum  up  completely  the  teaching  of  the 
great  Apostle’s  life.  Dr.  Beet,  treating  these  Epistles 
in  their  generally  accepted  chronological  order,  from 
Thessalonians  to  Titus,  says  that  they  exhibit  the 
springtime  (1  and  2  Thessalonians),  summer  (Galatians, 
1  and  2  Corinthians,  Romans),  autumn  (Ephesians, 
Philippians,  Colossians,  Philemon),  and  winter  (the  Pas¬ 
toral  Epistles)  of  the  great  Apostle’s  year.  Lightfoot 
tabulates  the  Epistles  in  this  way:  (a)  The  Second  Mis¬ 
sionary  Journey  (1  and  2  Thessalonians),  The  Epistles 
of  the  Tribunal,  or  Christ  the  Judge;  (b)  The  Epistles 
of  the  Third  Missionary  Journey  (1  and  2  Corinthians, 
Galatians,  Romans),  The  Epistles  of  the  Cross,  or  Christ 
the  Redeemer;  (c)  The  Epistles  of  the  first  captivity 
(Philippians,  Ephesians,  Colossians,  and  Philemon),  The 
Epistles  of  the  Throne,  or  Christ  the  Word;  (d)  The 
Epistles  of  the  Release  and  second  captivity  (1  Timothy, 
Titus,  2  Timothy),  The  Epistles  of  the  Congregation, 
or  Church  Organisation. 

Ephesians  and  Colossians  represent  the  highest,  full¬ 
est,  richest  presentation  of  Christianity.  Just  as  Romans 
tells  us  how  to  enter  into  fellowship  with  Christ  through 
the  Gospel,  so  Ephesians  and  Colossians  tell  us  how  to 
abide  therein.  First  we  come  out  of  bondage  and  then 
we  are  brought  into  the  banqueting-house. 


8 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


I.  The  Place 

Colosse  was  in  Asia  Minor,  and  was  reached  from  the 
sea  from  Miletus  up  the  rivers  Meander  and  Lycus. 
There  were  three  cities  near  one  another :  Laodicea,  Hier- 
apolis,  and  Colosse.  St.  Paul  does  not  seem  to  have  visited 
Colosse,  but  Epaphras,  one  of  his  converts  at  Ephesus 
during  the  three  years  there  (Acts  19:10-26),  was  the 
means  of  founding  the  Colossian  Church,  and  was  its 
Evangelist  (Col.  1:4,  9;  4:12,  13).  This  Epistle  was 
written  during  St.  Paul’s  imprisonment  in  Rome  (Acts 
28:30),  about  A.  D.  62  or  63. 

II.  The  Purpose 

Colossians  was  written  because  there  was  real  danger 
of  false  teaching,  a  mixture  of  Judaism  and  Orientalism 
(2:16-18).  This  took  the  form,  first,  of  an  exclusive 
intellectualism,  almost  entirely  connected  with  speculation, 
and,  then,  in  practical  life  the  tendency  was  either  in 
the  direction  of  asceticism  or  sensuality.  As  in  Galatians 
and  Romans  the  Apostle  waged  warfare  against  every¬ 
thing  legalistic  and  materialistic  which  was  placed  as  a 
stumbling-block  to  people  who  desired  to  know  and  accept 
the  Gospel,  so  here  he  contends  against  everything  that 
would  minister  to  intellectual  pride  and  separateness. 

It  is  especially  interesting  to  notice  the  relation  of  this 
Epistle  to  that  of  Ephesians,  because  the  likeness  is  so 
marked.  As  one  writer  puts  it:  “Out  of  95  verses  in 
Colossians,  78, have  a  marked  resemblance  to  Ephesians; 
while  out  of  the  155  verses  in  Ephesians,  78  resemble 
Colossians.”  But  the  particular  character  of  this  resem¬ 
blance  is  even  more  striking.  The  same  topics  are  treated 
in  both,  but  with  a  very  significant  difference  of  applica¬ 
tion.  Dr.  Sanday  has  thus  stated  this  feature : — 

“In  the  Ephesians  the  Church  is  the  primary  object, 


Introduction 


9 


and  the  thought  passes  upward  to  Christ  as  the  Head  of 
the  Church.  In  the  Colossians  Christ  is  the  primary 
object,  and  the  thought  passes  downwards  to  the  Church 
as  the  Body  of  Christ.” 

The  more  this  contrast  is  studied  the  more  remarkable 
it  will  appear.  In  Colossians  the  Apostle  gives  a  careful 
and  thorough  statement  of  the  person  and  work  of  Christ; 
while  in  Ephesians  the  main  topic  is  our  Lord’s  relation 
to  the  Church.  In  Colossians  there  is  no  such  emphasis 
on  the  Church  and  its  privileges,  but  only  on  the  great 
realities  concerning  Christ.  Nothing  can  be  for  a  moment 
allowed  to  come  between  the  soul  and  God.  The  same 
duties  are  emphasised  in  both  Epistles,  but  with  this  dif¬ 
ferent  bearing.  Our  life,  as  stated  in  Colossians,  is  to 
be  lived  in  relation  to  Christ,  while  many  of  the  moral 
applications  in  Ephesians  are  related  to  the  Church  and 
to  our  duties  to  one  another. 

III.  The  Plan 

Of  the  many  attempts  to  analyse  this  Epistle  only  two 
seem  to  be  worthy  of  attention.  One  of  these  appeared 
in  The  Princeton  Theological  Review  for  October,  1918, 
and  is  by  Prof.  E.  C.  Caldwell,  of  Richmond,  Vir¬ 
ginia.  It  forms  part  of  the  author’s  Stone  Lectures  at 
Princeton,  and  it  is  earnestly  to  be  hoped  that  it  will 
be  issued  in  book  form.  Dr.  Caldwell  calls  attention  to 
the  way  in  which  so  many  writers  seem  to  think  that  there 
is  no  organic  structure  in  Colossians,  while  he,  on  the 
contrary,  maintains  that  there  is  a  real  literary  arrange¬ 
ment,  and  that  every  section,  paragraph,  and  sentence  has 
its  proper  place  and  function.  This  is  how  Professor 
Caldwell  sets  out  the  plan  of  the  Epistle: — 

1.  Introduction.  1 :1-14.  This  includes  the  salutation, 
the  thanksgiving,  and  the  opening  prayer. 

2.  Part  1.  1 : 1 5-23.  The  pre-eminence  of  Christ  over 

creation,  providence,  and  redemption. 


10 


I 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


3.  Part  2.  1  ‘24-4 :6.  The  practical  effects  of  the 

pre-eminence  of  Christ. 

(a)  On  Paul  himself  (1:24—2:7). 

(b)  On  a  false  philosophy  of  the  Christian  life 
(2:8-23). 

(c)  On  the  true  doctrine  of  the  Christian  'ife 
(3  :l-4 :6). 

In  this  section  there  are  five  fruits  of  the  Christian 
life,  all  proceeding  from  the  union  in  Christ  stated  in 
3:1-4.  The  first  fruit  is  the  death  of  the  “old  man” 
(3:5-9).  The  second  is  the  putting  on  of  the  “new 
man”  (3:10,  11).  The  third  is  the  clothing  of  the  new 
man  with  the  garments  of  holiness  (3  :12-14).  The  fourth 
is  the  transformation  of  relationships  (3:18-4:1).  The 
fifth  is  a  life  of  prayer  and  activity  (4:2-6). 

4.  Conclusion  (4:7-18). 

This  is  only  a  bare  outline  of  a  most  suggestive  and 
valuable  study  which  readers  of  the  book,  when  it  comes, 
will  be  only  too  glad  to  ponder  and  make  their  own. 

The  other  analysis  is  found  in  Dr.  Bullinger’s  interest¬ 
ing  book,  “The  Church  Epistles,”  and  it  is  particularly 
interesting  to  compare  this  with  the  former  one,  and  see 
the  points  of  agreement  as  well  as  of  difference. 

1.  Opening  salutation  (1 :1,  2). 

2.  Mutual  reports  and  messages  by  Epaphras  (1:3-8). 

3.  St.  Paul’s  solicitude  for  the  Colossian  saints  and 
his  prayer  for  them  ( 1 :9-2 :7) . 

4.  Doctrinal  correction,  with  special  reference  to  union 
with  Christ  in  His  death  (2:8-23). 

5.  Doctrinal  correction,  with  special  reference  to  union 
with  Christ  in  His  resurrection  (3 :1 — 4 :1 ) . 

6.  St.  Paul’s  solicitude  for  the  Colossian  saints  and 
their  prayers  for  him  (4:2-6). 

7.  Mutual  reports  and  messages  by  Tychicus  and 
Onesimus  (4:7-9). 


Introduction 


11 


8.  Closing  salutation  (4:10-18). 

It  will  be  noticed  that  in  this  outline  there  is  an  intro¬ 
version,  Section  1  agreeing  with  Section  8,  2  with  7,  3 
with  6,  and  4  with  5. 


IV.  The  Principle 

There  seems  no  doubt  that  the  dominating  thought  of 
the  Epistle  is  “Christ  is  all.”  Dr.  Caldwell  says  that 
the  well-known  lines  of  Charles  Wesley’s  hymn  express 
the  central  idea: — 

Thou,  O  Christ,  art  all  I  want, 

More  than  all  in  Thee  I  find. 

And  he  adds  that  whenever  he  reads  Colossians  he  is 
reminded  of  the  well-known  passage  in  Browning: — 

I  say,  the  acknowledgment  of  God  in  Christ,  accepted 
by  thy  reason, 

Solves  for  thee  all  questions  in  the  earth  and  out  of  it, 

And  has  so  far  advanced  thee  to  be  wise. 

Three  texts  sum  up  this  truth:  “That  in  all  things  He 
might  have  the  pre-eminence”  (1 :18)  ;  “In  Whom  dwell- 
eth  all  the  fulness  of  the  Godhead  bodily”  (2 :9)  ;  “Christ 
is  all  and  in  all”  (3:11).  The  failure  of  the  Colossians 
was  at  this  very  point,  “not  holding  fast  the  Head” 
(2 :19).  It  is  a  well-known  story  that  the  celebrated  artist, 
Dannecker,  was  asked  by  Napoleon  to  paint  Venus  for 
the  Louvre,  and  declined.  An  enormous  sum  was  then 
offered,  and  he  still  refused.  The  Emperor  angrily 
demanded  the  reason  why  he  declined,  and  the  painter’s 
answer  was:  “I  have  painted  Christ,  and  I  can  never 
lower  my  brush  to  paint  an  inferior  subject.”  It  is  also  said 
of  him  that  the  first  time  he  painted  Christ,  after  years  of 
hard  work,  he  uncovered  the  canvas  and  asked  his  little 
daughter  to  look  at  it.  When  she  clapped  her  hands 
and  expressed  surprise  and  admiration,  the  father  asked: 


12 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


“Who  do  you  think  it  is  ?”  “Oh,”  she  replied,  “it  is  a  great 
man.”  The  painter  felt  disappointed,  and  soon  the  picture 
was  daubed  beyond  recall.  He  felt  that  he  had  failed 
because  his  little  child  did  not  recognise  that  it  was  meant 
for  Christ.  He  went  to  work  again,  toiled  as  he  prayed, 
and  prayed  as  he  toiled,  and  when  he  took  the  child  in 
next  time,  there  was  no  such  expression  of  childish 
delight,  but  instead  the  little  one  stole  quietly  up  to  the 
painting  as  though  it  were  real,  and  said,  “Suffer  the 
little  children  to  come  unto  me.”  This  is  the  secret  of 
all  true  life,  the  preciousness  and  power  of  Christ. 

This  Epistle  has  a  special  and  direct  bearing  on  the 
various  heresies  of  the  present  day,  because  it  is  con¬ 
cerned  with  the  positive  presentation  of  the  antidote  to 
every  form  of  poison.  As  the  late  Bishop  Moule  truly 
and  forcibly  said:  “No  surer  test  according  to  the  Holy 
Scriptures  can  be  applied  to  anything  claiming  to  be  Chris¬ 
tian  teaching.  Where  does  it  put  Jesus  Christ?  What 
does  it  make  of  Jesus  Christ?  Is  He  something  in  it  or 
is  He  all  ?”  Another  writer  points  out  that  the  Colossian 
heresy  was  no  vulgar  falsehood,  because  at  the  bottom 
of  it  there  was  an  intense  yearning  for  something  which 
could  not  be  satisfied  in  teaching  the  mediation  of  angels, 
and  the  consequent  removal  of  God  from  all  contact  with 
matter.  It  claimed  to  honour  God,  and  at  the  same  time 
to  show  its  own  humility  amid  human  and  earthly  evils 
as  shrinking  from  any  direct  fellowship  with  God,  while 
in  its  asceticism  it  ministered  to  human  pride  and  self- 
righteousness.  “It  was  human  nature  as  essentially  dis¬ 
played  everywhere,  and  in  all  ages ;  the  circumstances  and 
particular  tenets  ever  changing,  but  the  affectation  of 
humility,  and  the  proud,  self-righteous  spirit  ever  remain¬ 
ing  the  same.  And  thus  it  is  that  the  Colossian  heresy 
was  the  anticipation  of  the  errors  of  today,  and  that  the 
Apostle’s  confutation  of  it  supplies  the  needed  instruction 


Introduction 


13 


for  ourselves.”  ( Oneness  with  Christ ,  by  Bishop  W.  R. 
Nicholson,  pp.  19,  20.) 

Thus  our  real  safeguard  is  a  personal  experience  of 
Christ,  and  as  we  consider  our  own  circumstances  today 
as  faced  with  Unitarianism,  Socialism,  Spiritualism, 
Occultism,  Russellism,  Eddyism,  the  one  test  is  “What 
think  ye  of  Christ?”  If  only  we  are  told  where  men  and 
systems  put  the  Divine  Person  and  Atoning  Work  of  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ,  we  can  at  once  decide  whether  this 
or  that  is  Christian  or  not. 

This  emphasis  on  a  personal  conviction  and  conscious¬ 
ness  of  Christ  has  an  equally  Divine  bearing  on  the  serious 
lack  of  certitude  which  marks  so  much  religion  today. 
As  a  thoughtful  writer  has  said :  “Men  are  casting  about 
them  on  either  side  for  some  standing  ground.  They 

have  no  strong  convictions . Our  present  distress 

is  ultimately  due  to  theological  unsettlement.”  Another 
writer  has  contrasted  the  remarkable  certitude  of  the  Old 
Testament  prophet  as  he  said  with  conviction,  courage, 
and  joy,  “Here  am  I,”  while  in  the  present  day  many  are 
asking,  in  hopeless  and  vague  uncertainty,  t(Where  am  I  ?” 
Those  who  know  by  personal  experience  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ  have  no  doubt  as  to  where  they  stand,  because 
they  are  able  to  say  with  the  Apostle,  “I  know  Whom 
I  have  believed.” 

Whoso  hath  felt  the  Spirit  of  the  Highest 

Cannot  confound,  nor  doubt  Him,  nor  deny. 

Yea,  with  one  voice,  O  world,  though  thou  deniest. 

Stand  thou  on  that  side,  for  on  this  am  I. 

N.  B.  Those  who  wish  to  give  the  closest  possible 
attention  to  this  truly  important,  valuable  and  precious 
part  of  God’s  Word  will  be  glad  to  have  references  to 
the  more  important  books  available. 

1.  For  grammatical  commentaries,  involving  a  knowl- 


14 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


edge  of  Greek:  Lightfoot,  Ellicott  and  Williams  (in  the 
Cambridge  Greek  Testament).  There  is  also  a  scholarly 
and  suggestive  treatment,  A  Letter  from  Asia,  by  Arch¬ 
deacon  Westcott. 

2.  For  English  commentaries,  without  involving  a 
knowledge  of  Greek:  Barry  in  Ellicott’s  Commentary 
for  English  Readers,  and  Rutherford’s  St.  Paul’s  Epistles 
to  Colosse  and  Laodicea  (one  of  the  most  useful  books, 
and  far  too  little  known)  ;  The  Cambridge  Bible  for 
Schools,  by  Bishop  Moule. 

3.  Devotional  and  Homiletic :  Maclaren  in  the  Exposi¬ 
tor’s  Bible  (a  model  exposition)  ;  Bishop  Moule’s  Colos- 
sian  Studies,  and  Bishop  Nicholson’s  Oneness  with  Christ, 
edited  by  Dr.  James  M.  Gray,  of  Chicago. 


CHAPTER  II 

Personal  Associations,  1:1-4 

THE  personal  openings  of  St.  Paul’s  Epistles  almost 
invariably  contain  revelations  of  the  writer’s  Chris¬ 
tian  character,  and  at  the  same  time  they  suggest 
elements  which  should  mark  our  life  in  and  for  Christ. 

I.  The  Greeting  (vs.  1,  2) 

1.  The  Source.  Paul  describes  himself  as  “an  Apostle 
of  Christ  Jesus  through  the  will  of  God,”  and  the  term 
“Apostle”  indicates  here,  as  elsewhere,  the  thought  of 
commission  (Luke  6:13).  St.  Paul  realises  that  he  had 
been  “sent”  by  Christ  Jesus  to  do  His  work.  The  refer¬ 
ence  to  “the  will  of  God”  is  a  further  reminder  of  the 
Apostle’s  authority  as  derived  from  God  and  as  inde¬ 
pendent  of  man.  The  phrase  also  suggests  the  truth  of 
the  title  of  Bushnell’s  sermon,  “Every  Man’s  Life  a  Plan 
of  God.”  And  yet  the  Apostle,  while  insisting  upon  the 
Divine  source  and  authority  of  his  work,  nevertheless 
showed  himself  to  be  truly  humble,  for  he  was  not  only 
independent  of  man,  but  in  a  sense  independent  of  him¬ 
self,  since  his  authority  came  from  God  and  through  God’s 
will. 

2.  The  Fellowship.  The  association  of  the  Apostle  with 
“Timothy  our  brother”  is  another  indication  of  Paul’s 
humility,  because,  although  he  had  much  to  say  that  was 
deep  and  important,  his  naming  of  Timothy  proves  that 
he  was  ready  to  connect  his  young  colleague  with  all  this 
revelation  of  Christian  truth.  The  word  “brother”  is  of 
special  interest,  because,  according  to  Bishop  Westcott, 
(Epistles  of  St.  John,  p.  55),  the  term  in  the  New  Testa¬ 
ment  always  signifies  the  Christian  relationship,  and  is 

15 


16 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


never  to  be  enlarged  into  the  modern  meaning  of  the 
brotherhood  of  humanity,  true  though  that  may  be  in 
itself. 

3.  The  Destination.  The  Epistle  is  addressed  to  “the 
saints  and  faithful  brethren  in  Christ  that  are  at  Colosse.” 
The  word  “saints”  means  “consecrated,”  and  is  a  title 
applied  to  all  Christians  without  exception.  It  is  particu¬ 
larly  important  to  realise  that  in  the  New  Testament  it 
never  refers  to  spiritual  condition,  but  only  to  spiritual 
position.  Nowadays  the  term  “saint”  is  often  used  cyni¬ 
cally  or  in  scorn  as  indicative  of  a  pretence  to  special 
holiness,  but  the  Bible  view  of  “saint”  is  just  one  who 
belongs  to  God.  It  is  not  known  why  the  Apostle 
addresses  these  later  Epistles  to  Christians  instead  of  to 
the  Church  as  a  whole.  The  change  from  “Church”  to 
“saints”  is  marked  by  the  Epistle  to  the  Romans.  These 
saints  are  described  as  “faithful,”  implying  steadfastness 
and  trustworthiness  (Acts  16:15).  This  was  their  atti¬ 
tude  to  God,  just  as  “brethren”  suggests  their  relationship 
to  those  around  them.  Thus  the  term,  “faithful  brethren,” 
describes  their  relation  both  to  God  and  man.  The  fur¬ 
ther  designation  of  them  as  “in  Christ”  and  “at  Colosse” 
is  a  beautiful  reminder  of  what  has  often  been  pointed 
out  as  the  two  spheres  of  the  Christian  life,  heavenly 
and  the  earthly.  Notwithstanding  all  the  sin  and  danger 
involved  in  their  living  “at  Colosse,”  they  were  safe  and 
strong,  and  could  feel  satisfied,  because  they  were  “in 
Christ.”  Our  Lord  similarly  describes  the  twofold  envi¬ 
ronment  of  the  Christian  when  He  said,  “In  Me  ye  may 
have  peace.  In  the  world  ye  shall  have  tribulation”  (John 
16:33).  Happy  is  the  Christian  who  realises  this  two¬ 
fold  sphere  and  lives  for  Christ  in  his  “Colosse.” 

4.  The  Character.  The  Apostle,  as  usual,  except  in 
the  Pastoral  Epistles,  greets  them  with  “grace  to  you  and 
peace.”  Grace  is  the  source,  of  which  peace  is  the  result : 


Personal  Associations ,  1:1-4 


17 


the  one  is  the  cause,  the  other  is  the  effect.  The  two 
words  are  also  descriptive  respectively  of  the  Greek  and 
Hebrew  salutations.  But  beyond  this,  “grace”  is  the  great 
Bible  word  expressive  of  God’s  undeserved  and  positive 
favour  to  the  sinner,  while  “peace”  is  the  outcome  of  that 
grace  in  the  experience  of  the  one  who  receives  it.  It 
is  somewhat  difficult  to  understand  why  this  grace  and 
peace  should  be  limited  here  to  “God  our  Father,” 
because,  as  a  rule,  Christ  is  associated  in  this  salutation. 
This  is  the  more  difficult  to  understand,  because  the 
Apostle  has  so  much  to  say  about  the  Divine  nature  of 
our  Lord.  The  two  words,  “God”  and  “Father,”  are 
helpfully  expressive  of  the  two  aspects  of  “power”  and 
“love.”  The  Hebrew  term  for  God  invariably  means 
strength,  while  the  thought  of  God  as  our  “Father”  nec¬ 
essarily  indicates  His  loving  interest  in  us  as  His  children. 

II.  The  Thanksgiving  (vs.  3,  4) 

1.  The  Fact.  With  the  exception  of  the  Epistle  to  the 
Galatians,  St.  Paul’s  letters  always  commence  with  thanks¬ 
giving.  This  seems  to  indicate  a  prominent  feature  of  his 
religious  life.  He  rejoiced  to  see  every  sign  of  the  work 
of  grace  in  the  various  communities  of  Christians,  and 
had  equal  joy  in  acknowledging  this  in  thanksgiving  to 
God.  It  would  be  well  for  all  Christians  if  the  note  of 
thanksgiving  were  made  more  definitely  a  part  of  our  life. 

2.  The  Association.  With  thanksgiving  came  prayer, 
and  here  again  we  notice  the  combination  of  prayer  and 
thanksgiving  in  the  Apostle’s  life.  Like  the  two  wings  of 
the  bird  which  are  required  to  enable  it  to  soar  into  the 
sky,  St.  Paul  felt  the  need  of  both  petition  and  acknowl¬ 
edgment.  Both  of  these  are  expressions  of  faith,  prayer 
being  the  faith  that  asks ,  and  thanksgiving  implying  the 
faith  that  takes.  The  object  of  the  thanksgiving  and 
prayer  is,  as  usual,  “God  the  Father  of  our  Lord  Jesus 

2— July  23. 


18 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


Christ.”  The  Apostle  was  deeply  conscious  of  the  reality 
of  God,  and  this  relation  of  the  Father  to  Christ  is  of 
particular  interest  (Rom.  15:6;  2  Cor.  1:3,  11:31;  Eph. 
1 :3;  1  Pet.  1 :3).  God’s  Fatherhood  in  relation  to  Christ 
is  one  of  the  three  aspects  of  the  Divine  Paternity  found 
in  the  New  Testament,  and,  of  course,  refers  to  the  unique 
connection  between  God  and  our  Lord.  It  is  interesting 
to  notice  that  in  one  passage  we  have  the  corresponding 
and  complementary  phrase,  “the  God  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ”  (Eph.  1:17). 

3.  The  Ground.  Three  reasons  are  assigned  for  the 
thanksgiving  and  prayer  of  the  Apostle.  He  had  not 
been  to  Colosse  or  come  in  contact  with  the  Christians 
there,  but  had  heard  of  these  things  from  his  friend 
Epaphras,  who  had  been  the  means  of  leading  the  Colos- 
sians  to  Christ  (1:7). 

(a)  Faith  in  Christ  Jesus .  This  is  naturally  the  first 
element  of  the  Christian  life,  because  it  brings  the  soul 
in  contact  with  our  Lord.  Three  Greek  prepositions  are 
found  in  connection  with  faith.  In  some  verses  Christ 
is  the  object  (eis)  of  faith;  in  others  He  is  the  foundation 
( £7rt )  of  faith;  while  yet  again,  as  here,  He  is  the  sphere 
(£v)  of  faith. 

(b)  Love  Toward  all  the  Saints.  This  naturally  sprang 
out  of  their  faith  in  Christ,  because  “faith  worketh  by 
love”  (Gal.  5:6),  and  those  who  are  spiritually  related 
to  Christ  are  thereby  of  necessity  related  to  those  who 
belong  to  Him.  The  universality  of  the  Apostle’s  refer¬ 
ence  to  love  is  noteworthy,  because  it  is  said  to  have  been 
directed  toward  “all  the  saints.”  This  emphasis  on  the 
unity  of  the  Christian  community  is  to  be  specially  noted, 
and  the  companion  Epistle  to  the  Ephesians  similarly 
refers  to  this,  as  it  speaks  of  the  necessity  of  all  the  saints 
for  the  purpose  of  comprehending  Christ’s  love  (Eph. 
3:18),  and  the  equal  necessity  of  intercessory  prayer  for 


Personal  Associations,  1 :1 -4 


19 


all  God’s  people  (Eph.  6:18).  There  is  scarcely  any¬ 
thing  in  which  we  can  more  definitely  show  our  love  than 
by  this  interest  in  “all  the  saints.” 

(c)  The  Hope  Laid  up  in  the  Heavens.  It  is  a  little 
difficult  to  know  the  precise  connection  here,  for  the 
Apostle  uses  a  different  expression,  “because  of”  the  hope. 
Some  think  that  the  thought  looks  back  to  his  thanks¬ 
giving  and  prayer,  which  have  hope  as  well  as  faith  and 
love  for  their  object;  others  favour  the  idea  that  “faith” 
and  “love”  are  based  on  the  hope,  and  that  this  is  the 
explanation  of  the  change  of  expression.  While  the 
latter  is  more  naturally  grammatical,  it  is  thought  to  be 
somewhat  strange  theologically,  though  in  reality  there 
does  not  seem  any  insuperable  difficulty  in  thinking  of 
the  faith  and  love  as  springing  from  the  absolute  cer¬ 
tainty  of  the  great  and  glorious  future  which  was  theirs 
in  Christ  through  the  Gospel.  But  in  either  case,  we  have 
the  three  Christian  graces  of  faith,  love,  and  hope.  Faith 
rests  on  the  past,  love  works  in  the  present,  and  hope 
looks  towards  the  future.  These  three  constitute  the  true 
Christian  life,  and  not  one  should  be  omitted  (1  Thess. 
1 :3,  9,  10).  We  are  only  too  apt  to  emphasise  faith  and 
love  and  forget  hope,  but  inasmuch  as  hope  is  invariably 
connected  with  the  coming  of  the  Lord,  it  is  a  vital  part 
of  our  Christian  life.  Faith  accepts,  hope  expects;  faith 
appropriates,  hope  anticipates ;  faith  receives,  hope  real¬ 
ises;  faith  is  always  and  only  concerned  with  the  past 
and  present,  hope  is  always  and  only  concerned  with  the 
future.  This  hope  is  said  to  be  “laid  up”  for  Christian 
people  in  the  heavens,  and  the  phrase  is  worthy  of  notice 
because  of  its  use  elsewhere.  Thus,  righteousness  is  said 
to  be  “laid  up”  for  those  who  love  Christ’s  appearing 
(2  Tim.  4:8),  while  it  is  also  recorded  that  it  is  “laid  up” 
for  men  once  to  die  (Heb.  9:2 7)'.  A  solemn  contrast 
is  also  seen  in  the  parable  of  the  pounds,  where  the 


20 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


unfaithful  servant  “laid  up”  his  Master’s  gift  and  did  not 
use  it  (Luke  19:20). 

As  we  review  this  section  of  the  Epistle,  we  observe 
three  elements  of  the  Christian  life  which  were  prominent 
in  the  Apostle’s  experience,  and  should  characterise  ours. 

1.  Consciousness  of  Relationship  to  God.  The  Apostle 
had  no  doubt  as  to  what  he  was  and  where  he  stood. 
As  a  servant  of  Christ  he  was  fully  assured  of  the  will 
of  God  and  of  the  grace  that  was  continually  coming 
from  God.  This  “blessed  assurance”  is  one  of  the  essen¬ 
tial  secrets  of  true,  buoyant,  vigorous  Christian  living. 

2.  Concern  for  the  Christian  Life  of  0  thers .  The  Apostle 
not  only  exercised  faith  in  Christ,  but  love  towards  Christ’s 
followers,  and  this  again  is  one  of  the  fundamental  real¬ 
ities  of  true  Christianity.  It  is  impossible  for  anyone 
to  possess  spiritual  life  without  showing  an  interest  in 
others,  for  the  man  who  claims  to  love  God  without  loving 
those  who  belong  to  God  contradicts  the  very  elements 
of  the  Christian  faith  (1  John  3:16;  4 :7,  11,  20,  21 ;  5  :2). 

3.  Completeness  of  Christian  Character.  In  the  three¬ 
fold  reference  to  faith,  love,  and  hope,  the  Apostle  shows 
the  necessity  of  a  “full-orbed”  Christian  life.  In  the 
picture  of  the  Holy  City  we  are  told  that  the  length, 
breadth,  and  height  of  it  are  equal  (Rev.  21:16),  and 
this,  as  Phillips  Brooks  has  pointed  out  in  one  of  his 
great  sermons,  suggests  the  necessity  of  a  true  proportion 
in  the  Christian  life.  Some  people  emphasise  depth  with¬ 
out  breadth;  others  are  concerned  with  breadth  while 
failing  in  depth.  The  true  believer  will  aim  at  being  both 
deep  and  broad,  lest  his  depth  alone  should  tend  to  nar¬ 
rowness,  and  his  breadth  alone  lead  to  shallowness.  Every 
true  character  will  possess  the  two  elements  of  intensity 
and  extensiveness,  and  faith,  love,  and  hope  in  their  pro¬ 
portion  and  balance  will  thus  be  at  once  the  proof  and 
guarantee  of  a  life  that  will  constantly  glorify  God. 


CHAPTER  III 

The  Apostolic  Message,  1:5-8 

ONE  great  thought  is  usually  prominent  with  St. 
Paul  and  is  never  far  away  from  his  interests — 
the  nature  and  extension  of  the  Gospel.  It  comes 
out  again  and  again  quite  unexpectedly,  and  here  it  arises 
naturally  out  of  the  salutation. 

I.  The  Word  Described 

It  is  interesting  to  notice  that  the  message  is  spoken 
of  as  “the  word  of  the  truth  of  the  Gospel.”  Christianity 
stands  for  reality  as  the  religion  of  truth  which  comes 
from  above.  It  is  also  a  “Gospel,”  a  message  of  good 
news.  This  “good  news”  is  thus  at  once  real  and  genuine 
and,  as  such,  is  incapable  of  alteration  (Gal.  2:5-14). 

II.  The  Word  Preached 

Epaphras  was  the  Evangelist  at  Colosse  (1:7;  4:12; 
Philem.  23).  He  had  proclaimed  the  good  news  to  these 
people  and  then  had  conveyed  to  the  Apostle  Paul  the 
tidings  of  what  he  had  done. 

III.  The  Word  Heard 

This  Gospel  had  been  heard  and  heeded,  because  the 
Colossian  Christians  had  not  only  listened  to  it  (v.  5), 
but  had  received  it  (vs.  7,  9).  The  preaching  of  the 
Gospel  calls  for  attention  by  those  to  whom  it  is  sent, 
and  whenever  it  is  thoughtfully  and  earnestly  listened  to, 
it  will  produce  its  effects  on  mind,  heart,  and  life. 

IV.  The  Word  Received 

This  Gospel  had  not  only  been  heard,  but  had  actually 

21 


22 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


been  assimilated  (v.  6),  and  those  to  whom  Epaphras 
proclaimed  the  truth  welcomed  what  they  had  heard  and 
made  it  part  of  their  personal  experience.  They  realised 
that  it  was  “the  grace  of  God  in  truth.”  Again,  there¬ 
fore,  the  idea  of  “truth”  is  made  prominent,  because  the 
essence  of  good  news  is  that  which  is  true,  while  the 
value  attaching  to  “grace”  is  that  it  must  be  real.  Not 
only  had  the  Gospel  been  assimilated  in  Colosse,  but  it 
had  actually  gone  much  further,  so  that  the  Apostle  could 
speak  of  it  having  reached  “all  the  world”  (v.  6).  This 
statement  in  view  of  the  early  date  is  very  significant 
and  shows  the  universality  of  the  Gospel  (Rom.  1:8; 
1  Thess.  1 :8)  as  the  power  of  God  unto  salvation  to  all 
who  believe  (Rom.  1:16). 

V.  The  Word  Proved 

The  result  of  their  learning  from  Epaphras  was  the  re¬ 
ception  and  reproduction  of  the  Gospel  in  their  lives,  and 
the  description  of  what  took  place  is  particularly  note¬ 
worthy  as  indicating  what  should  always  be  the  outcome 
of  the  hearing,  learning,  and  reception  of  “the  word  of 
the  truth  of  the  Gospel.”  The  inward  effect  was  “fruit” 
(v.  6).  This  is  the  inevitable  result  of  the  Gospel  as  a 
Divine  and  living  seed  (Mark  4:28).  This  fruit  was  at 
once  continuous  and  increasing,  showing  both  inward  and 
outward  power  (Eph.  2:21;  4:15).  It  is  one  of  the 
essential  features  and  necessary  proofs  of  the  Gospel  that 
the  results  should  be  constant  and  progressive.  Another 
point  of  importance  is  that  this  outcome  marked  the  whole 
of  their  Christian  life,  “since  the  first  day”  they  “heard 
and  knew  the  grace  of  God  in  truth”  (v.  6).  It  does  not 
take  long  for  the  Gospel  to  work,  for  the  moment  it  is 
received  into  the  heart  it  begins  to  bear  fruit.  The  use 
of  the  word  “knew”  is  of  special  importance,  because  it  is 
a  mark  of  these  Epistles  of  the  captivity  in  Rome,  indicat- 


The  Apostolic  Message ,  1:5-8 


23 


in g  a  full  and  mature  knowledge  (Eph.  1 :1 7,  18;  4:13). 
It  always  includes  a  personal  experience  as  well  as  an 
intellectual  conception,  and  is  part  of  that  knowledge  of 
God  which  is  life  eternal  (John  17:3).  The  reality  of 
this  life  at  Colosse  is  further  shown  in  the  description 
of  their  “love  in  the  Spirit.”  They  had  evidently  received 
and  were  realising  the  grace  of  God  in  such  a  way  as  to 
reproduce  it  in  a  love  which  came  from  the  Holy  Spirit. 
It  is  worth  while  noticing  in  these  verses  a  significant  and 
suggestive  implication  of  what  is  now  known  as  the  doc¬ 
trine  of  the  Trinity  (vs.  6-8).  It  is  in  such  ways  that 
the  Three  Persons — Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Spirit — are 
most  definitely  and  effectually  shown  to  be  Divine,  be¬ 
cause  of  their  spiritual  influence  in  the  life  of  believers. 

As  these  points  are  considered,  they  illustrate  very 
clearly  a  well-known  passage  of  the  Apostle,  that  the 
Gospel  is  “the  power  of  God  unto  salvation  to  everyone 
that  believeth”  (Rom.  1:16). 

1.  The  Gospel  as  God's  Power.  This  word  “power,” 
which  in  the  original  is  “dynamic,”  shows  what  Christianity 
was  intended  to  be  in  heart  and  life,  and  the  reality  of 
it  is  abundantly  evident  in  the  way  in  which  these  Colos- 
sian  Christians  experienced  “the  grace  of  God  in  truth.” 
This  was  the  “dynamic”  in  their  lives. 

2.  The  Gospel  as  God's  Power  unto  Salvation.  Salva¬ 
tion  is  one  of  the  great  words  of  the  New  Testament, 
covering  past,  present,  and  future,  and  the  results  of 
hearing  the  Gospel  are  clearly  seen  in  this  passage  to 
prove  the  present  and  continuous  salvation  of  these 
believers,  as  they  allowed  the  grace  of  God  to  work  in 
their  lives. 

3.  The  Gospel  as  God's  Power  unto  Salvation  for  All. 
The  universality  of  the  Gospel  is  evident  here,  as  else¬ 
where.  It  had  come  to  others  besides  those  in  Colosse 
(v.  5,  6)  and  was  bearing  fruit  “in  all  the  world.”  There 


24 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


is,  perhaps,  nothing  more  impressive  than  the  way  in 
which  the  Gospel  adapts  itself  to  the  varied  races, 
capacities,  and  circumstances  of  human  life  all  over  the 
world.  This  is  one  of  the  strongest  evidences  that  it 
comes  from  God.  Other  religions  are  only  partial  and 
local  and  make  no  universal  appeal.  Christianity,  because 
it  comes  from  God,  is  equally  suitable  to  all  races  of 
mankind. 

4.  The  Gospel  as  God's  Power  unto  Salvation  for  All 
through  Believing .  The  emphasis  placed  here  on  the  way 
in  which  these  people  in  Colosse  first  heard,  then  learnt, 
then  believed,  and  then  came  to  know  “the  word  of  the 
truth  of  the  Gospel”  shows  that  the  message  of  Christ 
is  intended  to  be  received  by  simple  trust,  and  when  it  is 
thus  accepted,  it  soon  vindicates  itself  in  various  ways 
in  heart  and  life. 

5.  The  Gospel  as  God's  Power  unto  Salvation  Is  to 
Be  Proclaimed  Everywhere.  This,  too,  is  implied  and 
suggested  all  through  this  passage.  When  the  Gospel  is 
received,  it  is  to  be  passed  on,  for  it  cannot  be  kept  only 
in  the  heart.  When  Epaphras  received  it  from  St.  Paul, 
he  quickly  communicated  it  to  others  as  “a  faithful  min¬ 
ister  of  Christ,”  and  then  the  Gospel  bore  fruit  in  the 
Colossians,  whereby  others  in  turn  were  made  acquainted 
with  it.  This  is  the  supreme  proof  of  the  reality  of  our 
life,  the  proclamation  of  the  Gospel  to  others.  Gratitude 
impels  and  obedience  compels. 


CHAPTER  IV 

An  Apostle’s  Prayer,  1:9-12 

HE  prayers  in  Philippians,  Ephesians,  and  Colos- 


sians  are  of  particular  interest,  because  they  express 


so  fully  the  deeper  experiences  of  the  Apostle.  On 
this  account  they  are  of  importance  in  revealing  some  of 
the  features  of  St.  Paul’s  spiritual  life.  They  afford 
believers  an  opportunity  of  testing  and  guiding  their  own 
lives.  This  is  the  first  of  the  prayers  in  the  present 
Epistle,  and  it  deserves  special  attention  from  the  stand¬ 
point  of  Christian  experience. 

I.  The  Reason  of  the  Prayer  (vs.  3,  4) 

As  St.  Paul  had  not  visited  Colosse,  the  information 
about  their  growing  faith  and  love  came  from  Epaphras 
(v.  5,  7),  and  when  the  tidings  arrived,  the  Apostle  not 
only  thanked  God,  as  we  have  seen,  but  offered  this  prayer 
in  his  deep  interest  for  the  spiritual  well-being  of  the 
Christians  in  Colosse.  It  has  often  been  pointed  out  that 
interest  in  the  spiritual  life  and  progress  of  others  is  a 
real  mark  of  Divine  grace,  for  it  prevents  a  believer  from 
being  selfish  or  self-centered. 

II.  The  Substance  of  the  Prayer 

This  is  seen  in  the  words,  “filled  with  the  knowledge 
of  His  will  in  all  wisdom  and  spiritual  understanding.” 
The  will  of  God  is,  of  course,  the  revelation  of  God’s 
character  and  purpose  for  mankind,  and  it  is  the  vital 
secret  of  all  Christian  life.  Just  as  in  the  Lord’s  Prayer 
we  pray,  “Thy  will  be  done,”  so  all  through  our  life  the 
will  of  God  may  be  said  to  dominate  everything.  This 
Divine  will  is  to  be  thoroughly  known,  and  here,  again, 


25 


26 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


we  have  the  characteristic  word  for  “knowledge,”  meaning 
deep,  full,  mature,  spiritual  experience,  which  is  the 
mark  of  the  growing  Christian  (Phil.  1:9;  Eph.  1:17; 
Philem.  6).  The  measure  of  this  knowledge  of  God’s 
will  is  suggested  by  the  words  “filled  with,”  indicating 
a  constant  experience,  and  a  permanent  and  practical 
knowledge  of  what  is  right  and  true.  This  knowledge 
is  to  show  itself  “in  all  wisdom  and  spiritual  under¬ 
standing.”  Wisdom  is  a  general  term,  involving  what 
may  be  called  the  power  of  spiritual  perception,  while 
“understanding”  is  a  definite  application  of  wisdom  to 
particular  cases,  “putting  two  and  two  together,”  and 
seeing  the  bearing  of  truth  on  life.  All  this  emphasis 
on  Christian  perception,  understanding,  knowledge,  wis¬ 
dom,  is  of  supreme  importance  as  a  safeguard  against 
error  of  various  kinds.  The  trouble  with  so  many  people 
is  that  they  are  superficial  in  their  knowledge  and  shallow 
in  their  experience,  and,  as  such,  are  a  prey  to  various 
errors,  by  being  “carried  about  with  every  wind  of 
doctrine.” 


III.  The  Object  of  the  Prayer 

The  knowledge  is  intended  to  lead  to  definite  practical 
life,  for  the  prayer  to  be  filled  with  the  knowledge  of 
God’s  will  is  followed  by  the  suggestion  that  “ye  might 
walk  worthily  of  the  Lord  unto  all  pleasing.”  Knowledge 
is  to  be  expressed  in  practice.  Christianity  was  often 
spoken  of  as  “the  way”  (Acts  19 :9,  23 ;  22  :4),  and  “walk¬ 
ing”  is  a  word  frequently  found  in  Scripture,  describing 
the  outward  and  visible  expression  of  our  Christian  life 
in  movement,  progress,  and  conduct.  Walking  worthily 
of  the  Lord  is  a  wonderful  thought,  and  may  well  be 
compared  with  other  passages  of  similar  meaning.  Thus, 
we  are  to  walk  worthy  of  our  Christian  calling  (Eph. 
4:1) ;  worthy  of  the  Gospel  (Phil  1 :27) ;  worthy  of  the 


An  Apostle’s  Prayer ,  1:9-12 


27 


saints  (Rom.  16:2)  ;  and  worthy  of  God  (1  Thess.  2:12). 
The  phrase  “unto  all  pleasing”  is  particularly  interesting. 
The  late  Bishop  of  Durham  felicitously  renders  it  “unto 
every  anticipation  of  His  will.”  This  means  that  we  are 
not  only  to  do  what  we  are  told,  but  to  anticipate  God’s 
commands  by  living  in  fellowship  with  Him.  The  word 
here  rendered  “pleasing”  is  not  found  elsewhere  in  the 
New  Testament,  but  is  used  in  Greek  outside  to  mean 
a  preference  of  the  will  of  others  before  our  own.  The 
Apostle  was  strongly  opposed  to  what  he  called  “men- 
pleasing”  (Gal.  1 : 10 ;  Eph.  6:6;  Col.  3:22),  as  altogether 
incompatible  with  being  a  follower  of  the  Lord.  While, 
of  course,  he  could  be,  and  was,  “all  things  to  all  men” 
(1  Cor.  9:22),  and  could  urge  the  duty  of  pleasing  “his 
neighbour  for  edification”  (Rom.  15:2),  yet  everything  in 
the  way  of  “pleasing”  must  be  subordinated  to  pleasing 
God  (1  Thess.  4:1),  since  only  in  this  way  can  we  possibly 
do  the  right  thing  in  making  ourselves  pleasing  to  men. 

Then  follow  the  details  of  this  walk  in  four  striking 
phrases  marked  by  participles: 

1.  We  are  to  be  “fruitful  in  every  good  work.”  Our 
life  is  to  be  characterised  by  ripeness,  as  we  do  service 
for  God. 

2.  Then  we  are  to  increase  by  the  knowledge  of  God 
(rather  than  “m”  the  knowledge  of  God).  Knowledge  is 
to  grow,  and  will  grow,  by  accessions,  and  the  more  we 
know  of  God  the  more  fruitful  will  be  our  life  and  the 
greater  the  increase  of  Christian  graces.  The  context 
suggests  that  the  path  towards  the  knowledge  of  God  is 
not  that  of  mere  speculation  or  even  of  devotional  con¬ 
templation,  but  the  way  of  definite,  genuine,  whole-hearted 
practice.  We  are  to  do  in  order  that  we  may  know  still 
more. 

3.  Then  comes  the  thought  of  strength  with  a  view  to 
“all  patience  and  long-suffering  with  joyfulness.”  Every 


28 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


word  calls  for  careful  consideration,  because  the  Apostle’s 
thought  seems  to  be  almost  incapable  of  being  expressed 
in  language.  The  strength  which  is  to  be  ours  is  intended 
to  lead  to  patience,  long-suffering  and  joy,  thereby  show¬ 
ing  that  the  inward  vigour  of  character  is  intended  to 
manifest  itself  in  quiet,  consistent  endurance  and  humility. 
The  element  of  joy  will  always  prevent  our  patience  from 
being  cold  and  repelling,  because  long-suffering  can  easily 
be  manifested  in  a  hard,  stern  way  which  will  bring  no 
glory  to  God.  We  hear  far  too  much  of  resignation  and 
far  too  little  of  a  delight  in  God’s  will.  The  three  words, 
“patience  and  long-suffering  with  joyfulness”  are  very 
interesting  in  their  combination.  “Patience”  means  endur¬ 
ance  rather  than  a  mere  passive  acceptance  of  a  certain 
position.  It  is  the  word  used  of  Job  (James  5:11),  and, 
as  we  know,  his  attitude  was  not  merely  that  of  resig¬ 
nation,  but  of  deliberate,  determined,  and  persistent 
endurance  in  the  face  of  trial.  With  this  “patience” 
comes  “long-suffering,”  which  is  to  be  understood  as 
implying  the  temper  of  gentleness  and  loving-kindness 
(1  Cor.  13  :4).  With  these  two  should  come  “joyfulness,” 
and  in  many  places  this  spirit  is  seen  exhibited  in  the  life 
of  Christ  and  the  teaching  of  the  Apostles  (Matt.  5:12; 
Heb.  12:2;  1  Pet.  4:13;  Phil.  1:18,  19).  And  so  as  a 
commentary  points  out,  these  three  words  form  a  climax : 
“patience”  struggles  and  endures ;  “long-suffering” 
endures  without  a  struggle;  “joyfulness”  endures  and 
glories  in  suffering. 

4.  The  crowning  grace  is  that  of  thankfulness,  the 
heart  full  of  gladness  and  gratitude  for  all  that  God  is 
moment  by  moment  to  the  soul.  The  Apostle  has  already 
expressed  his  own  thanksgiving,  and  now  urges  the  same 
welcome  grace  upon  those  to  whom  he  writes  as  that 
which,  in  a  way,  gives  force,  tone,  and  character  to  the 
entire  Christian  life.  Thanksgiving  will  always  manifest 
itself  in  the  word  “thanksliving.” 


An  Apostle's  Prayer,  1:9-12 


29 


IV.  The  Nature  of  the  Prayer 

It  is  impossible  to  dwell  upon  the  substance  and  purpose 
of  the  prayer  without  trying  to  discover  some  of  the 
features  of  the  Apostle’s  prayer-life,  (a)  There  was  an 
earnestness  about  his  petitions,  for  he  had  prayed  for  the 
Christians  in  Colosse  ever  since  he  had  heard  of  them 
from  Epaphras.  (&)  For  the  same  reason  his  prayer  was 
continuous.  He  “did  not  cease  to  pray,”  but  kept  on 
asking  again  and  again,  since  these  Christians  were  felt  to 
be  in  need  of  grace  and  graces  from  God.  (c)  There  was 
also  an  intensity  about  these  petitions,  for  they  went  down 
to  the  Apostle’s  heart  in  his  desire  to  obtain  for  these 
young  believers  all  possible  blessing.  ( d )  Nor  was  he 
alone  in  these  prayers,  which  were  offered  in  union  and 
communion  with  others.  Just  as  the  Epistle  associates 
Timothy  with  the  message,  so  he  was  connected  with  St. 
Paul  in  these  petitions.  Individual  prayer  is  mighty,  but 
united  prayer  is  mightier  still.  These  are  the  four  char¬ 
acteristics  of  the  Apostle’s  prayers,  and  they  reveal,  more 
than  anything  else,  what  he  was  and  how  he  lived. 

There  are  many  true  and  deep  lessons  for  the  Christian 
life  in  connection  with  St.  Paul’s  prayers,  and,  in  particu¬ 
lar,  they  speak  of  three  aspects  of  truth  which  are  of 
supreme  importance. 

1.  The  Value  of  Character.  The  details  of  the  Apostle’s 
prayer  show  what  he  felt  was  the  true  Christian  life.  It 
consists  of  being  rather  than  doing  or  of  being  with  a 
view  to  doing.  The  various  graces  mentioned  in  these 
verses  may  all  be  summed  up  in  the  word  “character,” 
and  it  is  what  we  are,  not  what  we  say,  that  gives  the 
best  testimony  to  others  of  the  reality  of  our  Christian 
life.  This  is  very  prominent  here  and  elsewhere  in  the 
Epistles.  “Character  makes  the  man.”  This  is  the  first 
thought,  as  we  contemplate  the  Christian  life  depicted  in 


30 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


the  Epistles.  And  then,  as  we  think  of  the  Apostle’s 
prayer,  we  naturally  add  the  complementary  truth,  “Christ 
makes  the  character.” 

2.  The  Value  of  Experience.  The  Apostle’s  prayer  is 
marked  by  much  reality,  fulness,  and  depth  of  Christian 
life,  and  it  is  evident  he  feels  the  necessity  and  importance 
of  this  on  behalf  of  the  Christians  for  whom  he  prays. 
Such  an  experience  is  always  based  on  a  personal  acquain¬ 
tance  with  God,  and  this,  in  turn,  can  only  come  through 
the  Word  of  God.  Every  emphasis  on  “knowledge” 
shows  that  St.  Paul  is  concerned  for  spiritual  experience 
as  one  of  the  chief  marks  of  a  growing  Christian.  It 
has  often  been  pointed  out  that  St.  John  seems  to  have 
the  same  conception  of  the  vital  importance  of  experience, 
for  he  refers  to  the  Christian  life  under  its  three  stages 
of  “little  children,”  “young  men,”  and  “fathers”  (1  John 
2:12-14).  The  “little  children”  possess  the  inestimable 
benefit  of  forgiveness  and  are  in  spiritual  touch  with  their 
Father.  The  “young  men”  are  vigorous  and  strong, 
having  overcome  Satan,  because  of  the  indwelling  of  God’s 
Word.  The  “fathers”  are  those  who  “know,”  and  this 
seems  to  be  the  culmination  of  everything.  And  yet 
knowledge  and  the  Word  of  God  are  associated  with  the 
“little  children”  and  “young  men”  as  well,  thereby  show¬ 
ing  the  absolute  necessity  of  a  personal  experience  if  our 
Christian  life  is  to  be  what  God  intends  it  to  be. 

3.  The  Value  of  Intercession .  It  is  clear  from  this 
and  several  other  passages  that  St.  Paul  made  much  of 
prayer  on  behalf  of  others.  Not  only  did  he  seek  their 
prayers,  but  he  prayed  for  them.  A  writer  has  helpfully 
suggested  that  it  might  have  seemed  that,  as  they  were 
already  Christians,  the  Apostle  should  have  concentrated 
his  entire  interest  in  prayer  for  the  unconverted,  but  it 
is  evident  that  he  realised  the  need  of  Christians  to  grow, 
to  become  strong,  and  to  reach  as  far  as  possible 


An  Apostle's  Prayer,  1:9-12 


31 


“the  measure  of  the  stature  of  the  fulness  of  Christ.,, 
Thus,  as  at  every  stage  of  the  Christian  life,  “we 
need  to  be  taught  more  and  more,”  so  we  need  to 
be  evermore  in  prayer  for  each  other.  Bishop  Moule 
quotes  from  an  old  book,  The  Christian  Ministry,  by 
Charles  Bridges :  “There  can  be  little  doubt  but  we  shall 
find  that  our  most  successful  hours  in  employment  for 
our  people  were  not  those  when  we  were  speaking  to 
them  of  God,  but  when  we  were  speaking  for  them  to 
God.”  To  the  same  effect  are  some  important  words 
of  E.  M.  Bounds  in  his  valuable  book,  Power  Through 
Prayer:  “The  Church  is  looking  for  better  methods ;  God 
is  looking  for  better  men.  What  the  Church  needs  today 
is  not  more  machinery  or  better,  not  new  organisations 
or  more  novel  methods,  but  men  whom  the  Holy  Ghost 
can  use — men  of  prayer,  men  mighty  in  prayer.  The 
Holy  Ghost  does  not  flow  through  methods,  but  through 
men.  He  does  not  come  on  machinery,  but  on  men.  He 
does  not  anoint  plans,  but  men — men  of  prayer.  Talking 
to  men  for  God  is  a  great  thing,  but  talking  to  God  for 
men  is  greater  still.  He  will  never  talk  well  and  with 
real  success  to  men  for  God  who  has  not  learned  weM 
how  to  talk  to  God  for  men,” 


CHAPTER  V 
God  the  Father,  1:12,  13 

IT  is  surprising  that  so  little  mention  is  made  of  God 
the  Father  in  the  lives  of  many  Christian  people, 
while  there  is  an  almost  constant  reference  to  our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ.  This  feature  has  given  rise  to  some 
severe  criticism  of  Evangelicalism  as  favouring  what  has 
been  called  a  “Jesus-religion."  While  it  is  not  fair  criti¬ 
cism,  there  is  sufficient  truth  in  it  to  make  us  give  careful 
attention  to  the  matter,  and  it  cannot  be  doubted  that 
many  of  our  hymns,  perhaps  too  many,  are  addressed 
to  our  Lord  instead  of  to  the  Father,  which  helps  in  the 
same  direction  to  concentrate  attention  on  the  Second 
Person  of  the  Trinity  to  the  frequent  virtual  forgetfulness 
of  the  First.  The  New  Testament  invariably  sets  before 
us  God  the  Father  as  both  the  primary  Source  and  the 
ultimate  Goal  of  the  believer's  life,  and  the  Apostle  in 
these  verses  provides  a  valuable  opportunity  of  seeing  this 
for  ourselves.  Three  truths  are  definitely  associated  with 
the  Father  as  the  ground  of  our  thankfulness. 

The  title  “Father"  is  particularly  noteworthy  because 
of  its  frequency  on  the  lips  of  our  Lord.  The  Old  Testa¬ 
ment  has  comparatively  little  to  say  about  the  Fatherhood 
of  God,  and  even  when  it  does  say  anything  the  associa¬ 
tion  is  almost  entirely  with  Israel  and  the  covenant.  But 
in  the  New  Testament  the  Divine  Fatherhood  appears 
with  remarkable  fulness,  mainly  because  it  was  beyond 
all  others  the  name  used  by  our  Lord  to  express  His 
relationship  to  God.  It  has  been  computed  that  He  spoke 
of  the  Father,  and  used  this  title  some  150  times,  and 
it  is  well  known  how  singularly  infrequent  was  His  use 
of  the  term  “God."  This  emphasis  on  God  as  His  own 

32 


God  the  Father ,  1:12,  13 


33 


Father  and  as  the  Father  of  all  believers  (John  1:12; 
Gal.  3 :26)  is  of  vital  importance  in  regard  to  things 
spiritual. 


I.  The  Inheritance 

When  St.  Paul  speaks  in  this  verse  of  “the  inheritance," 
he  seems  to  be  giving  a  Christian  interpretation  to  a  well- 
known  Old  Testament  word.  From  the  thought  of  the 
earthly  Canaan  he  leads  up  to  the  truth  of  the  spiritual 
inheritance  of  believers  (Deut.  32:9;  Job  31:2;  Psa. 
47:4).  This  inheritance  has  been  assigned  to  God’s 
people,  and  is  the  outcome  of  their  new  birth  (1  Pet. 
1 :3,  4).  It  is  of  special  importance  to  remember  that  the 
words  “heir"  and  “inheritance,"  with  all  their  associated 
terms  and  ideas,  are  to  be  carefully  distinguished  from 
our  modern  use  of  the  same  words.  Today  the  “heir" 
is  one  who  has  not  yet  come  into  his  “inheritance,"  but 
has  to  wait  until  the  death  of  the  present  possessor.  In 
the  Bible,  however,  the  Christian’s  heritage  is  something 
present  and  actual,  being  enjoyed  here  and  now.  It  is 
worth  while  to  notice  that  the  Christian  life  may  be 
summed  up  in  six  words,  which  cover  the  whole  from 
the  beginning  to  end.  It  starts  with  Sonship ;  it  proceeds 
to  Discipleship ;  it  calls  for  Stewardship;  it  is  expressed 
in  Worship;  it  rejoices  in  Fellowship;  and  it  culminates  in 
Heirship  (Rom.  8:17).  It  is  also  vital  to  realise  that 
the  spiritual  counterpart  of  Canaan  is  not  heaven,  but 
the  life  of  spiritual  privileges  at  the  present  time.  It 
is  unfortunate  that  so  many  hymns  connect  Canaan  with 
heaven.  The  old  words, 


Could  we  but  stand  where  Moses  stood 
And  view  the  landscape  o’er, 

Not  Jordan’s  stream  nor  death’s  cold  flood 
Could  fright  us  from  the  shore, 


3 


34 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


are  true  in  themselves,  but  they  give  a  wrong  impression 
of  the  New  Testament  teaching  concerning  Canaan.  In 
the  same  way  we  sing  about  “Sweet  Fields  Beyond  the 
Swelling  Flood,”  but  we  often  fail  to  enjoy  the  reality 
and  blessedness  of  our  present  privileges.  When  Joshua 
entered  Canaan  there  were  enemies  left  to  fight,  and  when 
we  enter  our  spiritual  Canaan  there  are  still  foes  to  face. 
This  alone  shows  that  the  reference  must  be  to  the  present 
life,  for,  of  course,  there  will  be  no  foes  in  heaven.  It 
seems  a  pity,  and  often  leads  to  spiritual  loss,  to  project 
so  many  of  our  joys  into  the  future,  instead  of  realising 
them  in  the  present.  Children  are  taught  to  look  forward 
to  heaven  as  a  place  where  they  will  be  happy  when  they 
die,  but  it  may  be  questioned  whether  hymns  about  heaven 
are  spiritually  helpful  for  children.  Someone  has  said 
that  it  would  be  truer  to  sing 

There  is  a  happy  land, 

Not  far  away, 

and  also  that  a  revised  version  of  another  hymn  would 
be  helpful: — 


There’s  a  Friend  for  little  children 
Beneath  the  bright,  blue  sky. 

Be  this  as  it  may,  there  is  no  doubt  that  we  suffer  loss 
by  not  realising  and  rejoicing  in  our  present  inheritance 
of  grace  in  the  Canaan  of  the  soul.  Mr.  Hopkins  used 
to  tell  us  at  Keswick  of  a  commentator  who,  when  he  had 
to  write  on  the  words,  “Ye  rejoice  with  joy  unspeakable 
and  full  of  glory”  (1  Pet.  1:8),  said  that,  of  course, 
these  words  must  refer  to  heaven,  when  quite  obviously 
the  whole  context  refers  to  the  present  joy  and  exultation 
of  the  believer. 

This  inheritance  is  described  by  the  Apostle  as  “the 
parcel  of  the  lot”  or  “the  part  of  the  inheritance,”  thereby 


God  the  Father ,  1:12,  13 


35 


suggesting  the  truth  that  each  believer  has  some  portion 
of  the  great  inheritance  which  is  specially  his  own.  We 
share  the  inheritance  with  our  fellow-believers,  and  while 
all  are  equally  possessed  of  these  privileges,  yet  there 
is  at  the  same  time  a  distinction  through  the  conscious¬ 
ness  that  each  one  has  his  own  part  in  this  wonderful 
“lot”  (Acts  8:21). 

This  inheritance  is  described  as  belonging  to  “the  saints 
in  the  light.”  As  already  noticed,  the  word  “saint” 
invariably  describes  our  spiritual  position,  never  our  actual 
condition.  A  saint  is  one  who  belongs  to  Christ,  and 
this  inheritance  is  seen  to  be  the  possession  of  those  who 
are  themselves  possessed  by  Christ.  The  reference  to 
“light”  is  particularly  significant  as  expressive  of  the 
true  character  of  the  Christian  position  (John  1:1-5; 
Eph.  5:8-14).  Light  in  Scripture  always  includes  the 
three  elements  of  truth,  holiness,  and  joy,  and  the  sphere 
of  our  inheritance  is  in  this  threefold  light  of  truth,  purity, 
and  gladness.  There  is  much  in  the  Bible  about  light, 
which  calls  for  meditation.  God  is  Light  (1  John  1 :5)  ; 
Christ  is  the  Light  of  the  world  (John  8:12)  ;  the  Word 
of  God  is  described  as  light  (Psa.  119,  105)  ;  Christians 
have  been  called  out  of  darkness  into  God’s  light  (1  Pet. 
2 :9)  ;  and  on  this  account  are  described  as  “the  children 
of  light”  (1  Thess.  5:5).  It  is,  therefore,  not  surprising 
that  the  future  home  of  the  soul  is  described  as  an  abode 
of  light  and  glory  (Rev.  21 :23-22:5). 

But  special  attention  should  be  paid  to  the  work  of 
the  Father  in  this  connection.  He  is  said  to  have  “made 
us  meet.”  The  word  is  literally  “made  competent,”  being 
found  only  in  one  passage  elsewhere  (2  Cor.  3:6).  The 
Bishop  of  Durham  renders  it  “qualified,”  and  it  contains 
the  idea  of  sufficiency,  meaning  that  the  Father  has  called 
and  qualified  us  with  a  spiritual  equipment  sufficient  to 
possess  and  enjoy  this  spiritual  heritage. 


36 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


II.  The  Deliverance 

The  next  part  of  the  work  of  the  Father  on  our  behalf 
is  described  as  our  deliverance  from  the  authority  of 
darkness.  This  fresh  reference  to  darkness  is  impressive 
as  showing  the  contrast  between  it  and  our  spiritual 
inheritance  in  the  light.  Darkness  is  always  connected 
with  the  three  features  of  error,  impurity,  and  misery. 
Darkness  means  that  which  is  untrue,  unholy,  and  un¬ 
happy,  and  these  three  are  characteristics  and  results  of 
sin.  “Men  love  darkness  rather  than  light,  because  their 
deeds  are  evil”  (John  3:19).  The  Christian  is  to  avoid 
hating  his  brother,  because  that  would  be  walking  in  dark¬ 
ness  (1  John  2 :11),  and  to  walk  in  darkness  is  to  do  the 
very  opposite  of  holding  fellowship  with  God  (1  John 
1:6).  To  the  same  effect  St.  Paul  speaks  of  “casting  off 
works  of  darkness”  (Rom.  13:12).  Our  Lord  had  already 
spoken  with  solemnity  of  “the  power  of  darkness”  (Luke 
22:53),  and  when  St.  Paul  here  speaks  of  “the  authority 
of  darkness,”  he  is  apparently  referring  to  that  unre¬ 
strained  and  tyrannical  influence  which  is  brought  to  bear 
upon  those  who  belong  to  Satan.  All  who  are  out  of 
Christ  are  under  this  usurped  authority  or  power,  being 
led  captive  by  the  devil  at  his  will  (2  Tim.  2:26). 

The  work  of  the  Father  is  to  deliver,  or,  rather,  “rescue” 
us  from  this  authority.  The  word  is  quite  striking,  mean¬ 
ing  “snatched,”  in  the  sense  of  the  deliverance  of  a  cap¬ 
tive.  God  does  this  by  bestowing  upon  us  His  own 
Divine  life,  and  enabling  us  thereby  to  get  free  of  the 
bondage  of  spiritual  death.  The  word  “rescued”  is  in  a 
tense  which  indicates  actual  deliverance,  pointing  to  a 
time  in  the  past,  when  this  “rescue”  was  completely  and 
finally  brought  about.  It  shows  the  interest  and  love  of 
our  Heavenly  Father  that  He  should  do  this  for  us  in 
Christ  by  the  gift  of  His  Divine  grace. 


God  the  Father ,  1:12 ,  13  37 

III.  The  Transference 

It  is  not  sufficient  for  God  to  have  delivered  us  from 
the  kingdom  of  darkness ;  there  is  a  positive  side  as  well, 
for  He  has  at  the  same  time  translated  us  into  an  entirely 
new  kingdom.  This  is  called  the  kingdom  of  His  Son, 
and  we  have  here  one  of  the  passages  which  remind  us 
that  the  kingdom  of  Christ  is  already  in  existence  as  a 
spiritual  reality.  In  the  next  age  this  kingdom  will  be 
visibly  manifested,  but  for  the  present  it  is  internal,  not 
external.  It  consists  of  those  who  have  experienced 
spiritual  life,  and  into  this  fellowship  the  Father  puts 
every  true  believer  who  has  received  Christ  by  faith. 
This  is  the  distinction  between  the  visible  Church  of  pro¬ 
fessed  followers  and  the  spiritual  kingdom  of  those  whose 
actual  experience  is  “righteousness,  peace,  and  joy  in  the 
Holy  Ghost”  (Rom.  14:17). 

The  kingdom  is  described  as  that  of  the  Son  of  the 
Father’s  love,  the  kingdom  of  our  Lord,  and  of  no  one 
less  than  Divine.  Love  is,  as  we  know,  the  essence  of 
God’s  character  (1  John  4:16),  and  since  the  Son  is  of 
the  same  nature  as  the  Father,  it  follows  that  His  king¬ 
dom  is  one  of  love.  The  contrast  is  evident  between 
tyranny,  bondage,  cruelty,  and  love,  freedom,  privilege, 
and  joy. 

The  word  “translated”  is  of  particular  interest.  It 
refers  to  a  definite  and  complete  change.  It  is  found  only 
five  times,  but  always  in  this  sense  (Luke  16:4;  Acts 
13:22;  19:26;  1  Cor.  13:2).  The  corresponding  passage 
in  Ephesians  ( 1 :6)  sheds  light  on  this  Divine  act  whereby 
God  freely  bestows  grace  on  us  in  Him  Who  is  His 
beloved  Son. 

From  all  this  work  of  the  Father  two  great  truths 
emerge. 

1.  These  are  Facts.  The  verb  in  each  case  indicates 
something  actually  accomplished,  something  already  done, 


38 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


something  that  is  absolute,  and  not  merely  contingent. 
It  shows  the  value  and  importance  of  Divine  grace  in 
this  emphasis  on  the  Father’s  act.  Our  inheritance,  our 
deliverance,  and  our  transference  are  not  matters  involv¬ 
ing  our  own  effort  or  merit,  but  blessings  which  we  simply 
receive,  because  of  what  has  been  accomplished  by  the 
Father.  Merit  is  ruled  out  of  everything  from  first  to 
last  in  connection  with  Christianity  and  all  is  of  grace. 
This  emphasis  on  actual  facts  provides  an  inspiring 
foundation  for  our  life.  God  has  already  accomplished 
these  things,  and  it  is  for  us  to  receive  and  enjoy  them. 

2.  These  Facts  are  thus  to  be  Factors  in  Our  Life. 
Because  of  what  God  has  done  we  are  to  respond  and 
live  to  His  glory.  The  true  life  is  fourfold :  (a)  we  are 
to  trust;  (b)  we  are  to  be  thankful;  (c)  we  are  to  obey; 
(d)  we  are  to  bear  testimony.  And  thus  the  facts  become 
forces  in  our  experience  which  rejoice  the  heart  of  God, 
give  blessed  assurance  to  our  own  souls,  and  glorify  Him 
before  others. 


CHAPTER  VI 

The  Divine  Son,  1:14-17 

AT  length  the  theme  of  the  Epistle  is  reached.  Prayer 
/-%  and  thanksgiving  lead  to  an  expression  of  faith 
in  Christ.  The  entire  passage  (vs.  14-20)  con¬ 
stitutes  one  of  the  most  important  Christological  state¬ 
ments  in  the  New  Testament.  “As  a  Christological 
statement  it  has  scarcely  an  equal,  certainly  no  superior” 
(Nicholson).  With  this  may  be  compared  other  passages 
expressive  of  the  Person  and  Work  of  Christ :  Col.  2 :9-15 ; 
Eph.  1 :20-23 ;  Phil.  2 :6-l  1 ;  Heb.  1 :2-14 ;  Rom.  9 :5  ;  Gal. 
2:20;  1  Cor.  1:23,  24,  30.  We  shall  see  that  in  these 
verses  various  aspects  of  Christ’s  relationship  are  taught. 

I.  Christ’s  Relation  to  Grace  (v.  14) 

From  the  thought  of  the  Father  comes  the  natural 
reference  to  “the  Son  of  His  love,”  and  then  follows 
the  obvious  statement  that  “in  Him  we  have  redemption, 
even  the  forgiveness  of  sins.”  Redemption  is  one  of  the 
six  words  found  in  the  New  Testament  to  express  the 
work  of  Christ:  Sacrifice  (Eph.  5:2);  Offering  (Heb. 
10:10);  Propitiation  (1  John  2:2);  Ransom  (1  Tim. 
2 :6)  ;  Redemption  (Heb.  9:12)  ;  and  Reconciliation  (Rom. 
5:11).  The  special  thought  of  redemption  is  deliverance 
from  slavery  by  means  of  payment  (Rom.  3:24),  just 
as  in  verse  13  we  see  the  corresponding  thought  of  a  victor 
and  a  rescue.  The  word  rendered  “redemption”  is  signifi¬ 
cant  for  its  emphasis  on  the  completeness  of  the  work. 
The  verb  “to  redeem”  occurs  three  times  in  the  New 
Testament  (Luke  24:21;  Tit.  2:14;  1  Pet.  1:18),  and  in 
each  case  the  thought  is  of  deliverance  wrought  through 
the  death  of  Christ.  But  nowhere  are  we  told  to  whom 


39 


40 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


the  payment  was  made,  thereby  avoiding  the  old  and 
oersistent  error  (which,  however,  as  Dimock  in  his  Death 
of  Christ  acutely  points  out,  contained  the  germ  of  a  real 
truth)  of  the  devil  to  whom  the  payment  was  made. 
Scripture  is  content  with  emphasising  the  actual  payment 
of  what  is  valuable  in  the  sight  of  God,  that  which  can 
be  called  “the  precious  blood  of  Christ”  (1  Pet.  1 :19). 

The  specific  aspect  of  redemption  mentioned  here  is 
“the  forgiveness  of  sins,”  and  although  the  word  “for¬ 
giveness”  is  one  of  the  most  familiar,  it  may  be  questioned 
whether  many  who  use  it  realise  the  remarkable  force 
and  fulness  of  its  meaning.  “Forgiveness”  is  never 
defined  in  Scripture.  The  word  itself  means  “removal,” 
or  “sending  away,”  and  this  necessarily  includes  the  remis¬ 
sion  of  the  penalty,  the  removal  of  the  condemnation,  and 
also  the  actual  sending  away  both  of  sin  (the  root)  and 
sins  (the  fruit).  Never  once  do  we  read  of  the  forgive¬ 
ness  of  guilt  or  the  forgiveness  of  condemnation,  but  only 
of  the  forgiveness  of  sin  and  sins,  and  the  word  must, 
therefore,  mean  something  equivalent  to  the  fulness  of 
redeeming  love  and  grace,  covering  past,  present,  and 
future,  and  embracing  position  and  condition,  standing 
and  state,  character  and  conduct.  Nor  can  it  mean  only 
and  merely  the  negative  aspect  of  release,  but  must  involve 
also  the  positive  element  of  restoration,  including  saving, 
cleansing,  justifying,  purifying,  sanctifying,  illuminating, 
welcoming,  blessing,  and  glorifying.  A  careful  study  of 
the  usage  of  the  word  in  the  New  Testament  will  prove 
this,  however  novel  and  surprising  it  may  seem.  Of 
course,  we  are  accustomed  to  distinguish  between  for¬ 
giveness  and  justification,  but  there  is  a  sense  in  which 
forgiveness  may  be  said  to  include  everything  from  the 
beginning  to  the  end  of  Christian  experience,  because  of 
the  clear  reference  in  Scripture  to  the  “sending  away” 
of  sin  and  sins. 


The  Divine  Son ,  1 :1 4-17 


41 


II.  Christ’s  Relation  to  God  (v.  15) 

The  basis  of  redemption  is  here  seen  in  the  relation  of 
Christ  to  God.  There  could  be  no  forgiveness  of  sins 
unless  Christ  were  both  God  and  man,  for  only  a  Divine 
act  could  “send  away”  our  evil  doing.  Christ  is  described 
as  “the  image  of  the  invisible  God,”  and  the  word  “image” 
seems  to  include  the  two  ideas  of  representation  and  mani¬ 
festation  (2  Cor.  4:4;  Heb.  1:3).  In  similar  language, 
St.  John  speaks  of  Christ  as  “the  Word”  (John  1:1), 
meaning  thereby  the  thought  and  expression  of  God,  and 
for  this  reason  our  Lord  could  say,  “No  one  hath  seen 
God  at  any  time;  the  only  begotten  Son  who  is  in  the 
bosom  of  the  Father  He  hath  declared  Him”  (John  1 :18). 
To  the  same  effect  are  some  other  words,  “He  that  hath 
seen  Me  hath  seen  the  Father”  (John  14:9).  It  has  often 
been  pointed  out  by  writers  on  this  Epistle  how  in  these 
words  the  Apostle  destroys  all  those  erroneous  teachings 
which  were  already  beginning  to  have  influence  in  Colosse. 
Instead  of  the  various  emanations  from  the  Godhead 
which  were  considered  to  be  links  of  intercourse  between 
God  and  the  world,  the  Apostle  declares  this  vital  and 
true  doctrine  of  Christ  as  the  One  in  whom  God  was 
manifested  in  human  life.  Some  years  ago  a  ministers’ 
meeting  was  held,  when  a  paper  was  read  drawing  the 
conclusion  that  Jesus  Christ  was  a  little  more  than  man 
and  a  little  less  than  God,  the  old  error  of  the  fourth 
century  against  which  the  Nicene  Creed  was  drawn  up. 
A  friend  of  mine  who  was  called  upon  to  open  the 
discussion  said  that  this  view  would  not  do  for  him, 
because  he  was  a  sinner,  and  needed  a  Saviour,  and  that 
Saviour  must  be  God  as  well  as  man.  In  words  that 
deserve  to  be  quoted  again  and  again,  Bishop  Moule  has 
said :  “A  Saviour  not  quite  God  is  a  bridge  broken  at  the 
farther  end.” 


42 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


III.  Christ's  Relation  to  Nature  (vs.  16,  17) 

Christ’s  connection  with  earth  is  next  mentioned,  and 
He  is  described  as  “the  first  begotten  of  all  creation.” 
The  context  makes  it  perfectly  clear  that  this  reference 
to  Him  is  to  One  who  is  separate  from  and  above  creation, 
and  not  simply  a  created  Being.  It  indicates  His  unique 
supremacy  over  creation,  just  as  in  verse  18,  as  we  shall 
see,  the  same  word  is  used  of  His  relation  to  the  Church. 
There  are  also  three  prepositions  which  further  show  the 
relation  of  Christ  to  creation:  “In  Him  all  things  were 
created,”  and  also  “all  things  have  been  created  through 
Him  and  for  Him.”  Thus  He  is  seen  to  be  at  once  the 
sphere,  the  agent,  and  the  purpose  of  creation.  This 
creation  is  also  stated  to  include  all  things  in  heaven  and 
on  earth,  both  visible  and  invisible,  “whether  thrones,  or 
dominions,  or  principalities,  or  authorities.”  Even  more 
than  this,  Providence  is  associated  with  Him,  for  the  very 
same  Being  (“He  Himself”)  is  said  to  be  before  all 
things,  and  all  things  in  Him  find  their  coherence  and 
continuity  (v.  17).  Nothing,  therefore,  could  be  clearer 
than  these  statements,  expressive  of  the  priority,  sover¬ 
eignty,  and  continuity  of  Christ  in  relation  to  nature. 
It  will  be  seen  that  in  these  terms  the  Apostle  is  not 
referring  at  all  to  the  Incarnation,  but  to  the  priority 
of  Christ  to  creation,  His  essential  relation  to  God  and 
to  the  universe. 

In  this  wonderful  passage,  in  which  the  Apostle  seems 
almost  incapable  of  expressing  fully  the  Divine  thought 
in  human  language,  we  find  some  of  the  deep  things  of 
life,  and  we  may  consider  the  passage  as  teaching  a 
threefold  philosophy  which  Christians  will  do  well  to  heed. 

1.  The  Philosophy  of  Religion.  This  is  seen  in  Christ’s 
relation  to  God.  A  modern  book  tells  of  a  man  who  had 
been  brought  up  without  religious  teaching  and  of  his 


The  Divine  Son ,  1 :1 4-17 


43 


beginning  to  read  the  Bible.  He  said  he  was  always 
coming  on  bits  of  the  New  Testament  in  books,  and  he 
tried  to  believe  that  the  appeal  of  the  New  Testament 
lay  in  its  style.  “But  then  I  took  my  courage  in  both 
hands  and  read  the  New  Testament  right  through  and 
saw  there  was  no  contact  with  God  except  in  Christ.” 
This  is  the  fundamental  and  vital  problem  of  today  and 
of  all  other  days,  the  essential  Deity  of  Jesus  Christ. 
Nothing  less  than  this  will  suffice,  and  nothing  can  be 
called  Christianity  which  does  not  start  here  in  the  absolute 
oneness  of  Christ  with  the  Father  as  the  “image  of  the 
invisible  God.”  This  is  no  mere  abstract  theological 
principle,  but  a  truly  vital  necessity  which  touches  ordinary 
life  at  every  point.  People  sometimes  are  apt  to  think 
lightly  of  the  words  in  the  Nicene  Creed :  “Being  of 
one  substance  with  the  Father,”  but  it  must  never  be 
forgotten  that  these  words  commended  themselves  to  the 
whole  Christian  Church  after  the  Council  of  Nicaea  had 
dispersed,  because  they  represented  the  vital  truth  of 
Christ’s  oneness  with  the  Father  as  the  sole  basis  of 
human  redemption. 

2.  The  Philosophy  of  the  Universe .  This  is  seen  in 
the  fact  that  Christ  has  the  same  relation  to  the  natural 
world  as  He  has  to  the  spiritual  world.  Bishop  Lightfoot, 
in  an  ever-memorable  passage,  calls  attention  to  the  great 
loss  which  we  suffer  by  neglecting  this  wonderful  truth 
of  Christ’s  relation  to  nature.  He  very  pointedly  remarks 
that  “the  sympathy  of  theologians  with  the  revelations 
of  science  and  the  developments  of  history”  would  be 
much  more  hearty  “if  they  habitually  connected  them 
with  the  operations  of  the  same  Divine  Word  who  is  the 
Centre  of  all  their  religious  aspirations.”  He  also  remarks 
that  by  the  neglect  of  this  “our  theological  conceptions 
suffer  in  breadth  and  fulness,”  while,  on  the  other  hand, 
“the  recognition  of  this  idea,  with  all  the  consequences 


44 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


which  flow  from  it,”  would  more  than  any  other  way 
make  possible  that  “harmony  of  knowledge  and  faith  of 
revelations  and  research”  which  we  all  feel  to  be  essential 
to  complete  life  and  strong  influence  (Lightfoot,  Colos - 
sians,  pp.  114,  115).  Lightfoot’s  successor,  the  late  Bishop 
of  Durham,  similarly  points  out  how  this  thought  of 
Christ  as  the  “Cause,  Head,  and  Goal  of  the  created  Uni¬ 
verse”  binds  both  worlds  into  one,  and  “this  is  a  precious 
gain  when  our  hearts  fail  us  on  the  border-line  between 
the  two.”  Not  only  so,  it  makes  nature  so  much  more 
real  and  precious,  because  “it  connects  the  remotest  aeon 
of  the  past  with  Him;  it  connects  the  remotest  star  with 
Him;  it  bids  us,  when  we  feel  as  if  lost  in  the  enormity 
of  space  and  time,  fall  back  upon  the  Centre  of  both, 
our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  who  died  for  us.”  This  and  much 
more  should  be  pondered  by  every  earnest  thinker  who 
rejoices  to  realise  that  Christ  is  not  only  the  Saviour  of 
the  soul,  but  “the  ultimate  law”  of  the  universe  (Moule, 
Colossian  Studies,  pp.  80-82). 

3.  The  Philosophy  of  Individual  Life.  This  is  seen  in 
the  fact  of  the  power  of  redemption  (v.  14),  and  it  is  of 
special  importance  to  realise  that  this  redemption  is  in 
union  with  Christ  and  is  also  a  present  possession.  Notice 
the  forces  of  the  two  phrases:  “in  Him”  and  “we  have.” 
When  this  unspeakable  blessing  of  redemption  is  seen  to 
be  ours  as  a  blessed  reality  here  and  now,  because  of  our 
union  with  Christ,  we  have  learned  the  secret  of  true 
living  and  can  rejoice  with  “joy  unspeakable  and  full  of 
glory.” 


CHAPTER  VII 


The  Divine  Redeemer,  1:18-20 


THE  theme  of  the  epistle,  the  Divine  Person  of 
Christ,  is  so  full  and  varied  that  it  extends  to 
several  verses,  and  Christ’s  relation  to  creation 
(v.  15-17)  is  now  to  be  paralleled  by  His  relation  to  the 
spiritual  world. 


1.  His  Relation  to  the  Church  (v.  18) 

The  familiar  word  “Church”  deserves  careful  study 
both  here  and  in  the  companion  Epistle  to  the  Ephesians, 
because  the  reference  is  to  a  spiritual  organism,  not  an 
ecclesiastical  organisation.  The  word  “Church,”  repre¬ 
senting  the  Greek  “Ecclesia,”  was  originally  applied  to 
a  gathering  of  Greek  citizens  who  were  summoned  from 
their  homes  and  private  capacities  to  some  public  assem¬ 
bly  where  the  people  met  together.  In  the  Greek  version 
of  the  Old  Testament  it  is  the  translation  of  a  Hebrew 
word  referring  to  the  gathering  of  the  people  of  Israel. 
It  is  also  used  in  Acts  19:41  to  describe  the  meeting 
of  the  people  of  Ephesus.  In  the  Christian  sense  it 
always  indicates  a  meeting  of  Christian  people,  some¬ 
times  in  a  city  or  other  place  (Acts  8:1),  but  here  and 
in  Ephesians  referring  to  the  entire  number  of  believers. 
This  thought  of  the  Church  Universal  as  consisting  of 
those  who  are  spiritually  united  to  Christ  and  form  His 
Body  is,  as  the  late  Bishop  of  Durham  points  out,  the 
primary  idea  of  the  Church,  and  all  other  meanings  are 
to  be  regarded  as  strictly  secondary  to  it.  It  is  probable 
that  between  the  first  mention  of  the  word  “Church” 
in  Matt.  16:18,  and  the  use  of  the  term  in  Ephesians 
and  Colossians  there  is  no  other  reference  to  the  Church 


45 


46 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


as  a  whole,  but  only  to  particular  parts  of  it  in  their 
earthly  manifestations.  This  widest,  fullest,  and,  of 
course,  truest  sense  of  the  term  is  well  defined  in  some 
familiar  words :  ‘‘the  blessed  company  of  all  faithful 
people.” 

It  is  also  particularly  interesting  to  notice  the  differ¬ 
ence  of  treatment,  even  of  this  doctrine  of  the  Church 
in  Colossians,  when  compared  with  the  teaching  of  Ephe¬ 
sians.  In  Colossians  more  emphasis  is  placed  upon  the 
Head,  Christ  Jesus,  while  in  Ephesians  the  stress  is  laid 
on  the  unity  of  the  Body.  In  both  Epistles  Christ  is, 
of  course,  the  Head,  but  it  is  singularly  suggestive  to 
observe  the  difference  in  the  appeal  made  in  both  Epistles 
in  regard  to  the  same  practical  duties.  Thus,  for  instance, 
in  Colossians  men  are  to  avoid  untruthfulness  because  of 
their  relation  to  Christ  (3:9),  while  in  Ephesians  the 
same  duty  is  inculcated  from  the  standpoint  of  other 
Christians  (4:25).  This  is  only  one  of  a  number  of  com¬ 
parisons  in  which  this  aspect  of  truth  is  seen. 

The  thought  of  Christ  as  the  Head  of  the  Church 
implies  the  three  great  principles  of  life,  unity  and  sover¬ 
eignty.  He  is  at  once  the  Source  of  our  spiritual  life, 
the  Guarantee  of  all  spiritual  unity,  and  the  supreme 
Authority.  He  is  the  One  who  because  He  bestows  life, 
controls  all  Christians,  who  are  therefore  expected  to 
render  Him  love  and  loyalty.  The  more  this  thought 
of  our  union  with  Christ  as  the  Head  is  realised,  the 
truer  will  be  the  expression  of  our  life  in  fellowship  and 
obedience. 

Then  Christ  is  described  as  “the  beginning,”  and  the 
word  is  naturally  reminiscent  of  the  Greek  term  in  verse 
16  rendered  “principalities.”  It  teaches  that  Christ  is  the 
Beginning  of  everything  in  connection  with  the  Church, 
His  Body.  Then  follows  a  further  statement,  “the  first¬ 
born  from  the  dead,”  and  again  the  thought  looks  back 


The  Divine  Redeemer,  1:18-20 


47 


to  verse  15,  where  He  is  spoken  of  as  the  first-born  of 
every  creature.  The  thought  here,  however,  is  associated 
with  the  resurrection,  and  indicates  priority  in  regard  to 
His  own  resurrection,  and,  because  of  this,  the  Source  of 
our  resurrection  as  well.  By  the  resurrection  He  was 
“designated  Son  of  God  with  power”  (Rom.  1:4),  for 
although  Son  of  God  already  by  reason  of  His  eternal 
relationship  with  the  Father,  He  became  by  His  resur¬ 
rection  the  Source  of  spiritual  power  to  all  who  receive 
Him  (Rom.  1:16;  Eph.  1:19;  2:5). 

All  this  spiritual  relation  and  position  is  intended  for 
one  purpose :  “that  in  all  things  He  might  have  the 
pre-eminence.”  He  was  already  pre-eminent  in  creation 
(v.  15),  and  now  He  is  shown  to  be  similarly  supreme  in 
the  realm  of  grace  (Phil.  2:9-11).  While  this  thought 
is,  of  course,  intended  to  apply  to  the  whole  Church 
(Eph.  1:10),  it  is  impossible  to  avoid  noticing  the  sad 
and  solemn  contrast  with  the  only  other  place  where  the 
word  “pre-eminence”  is  to  be  found  (3  John  v.  9).  Those 
who  love  to  have  the  pre-eminence  cannot  possibly  recog¬ 
nise  the  pre-eminence  of  Christ. 

II.  His  Relation  to  Redemption  (vs.  19,  20) 

The  basis  of  what  has  been  said  is  now  shown  to  be 
due  to  the  Deity  of  Christ,  for  only  thus  could  there  be 
anything  like  His  position  in  the  universe  of  nature  and 
grace.  And  so  we  read  that  “it  pleased  the  Father  that 
in  Him  should  all  fulness  permanently  dwell.”  The 
Father’s  pleasure  concerning  Christ  is  noteworthy  here 
and  elsewhere  (Matt.  3:17),  and  shows  at  once  the  loving 
interest  of  the  Father  in  the  redemptive  work  of  His 
Son,  and  at  the  same  time  the  vital  necessity  of  that 
redemption  being  accomplished  by  none  other  than  a 
Divine  Being.  The  word  “fulness”  expresses  what  has 
been  called  “all  the  plenitude  of  Deity,”  and  it  includes 


48 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


“whatever  is  contained  in  the  Divine  nature  in  all  its 
depths  of  eternal  existence,  righteousness,  wisdom,  power, 
holiness,  goodness,  truth,  love.”  The  term  is  found  in 
this  and  the  companion  Epistle,  and  it  is  particularly 
interesting  to  notice  the  association  of  the  word  and 
thought  with  each  Person  of  the  Trinity  (Eph.  3:19; 
4:13;  5:18).  It  is  also  found  elsewhere  in  this  Epistle, 
indicating,  as  here,  the  entire  fulness  or  completeness  of 
the  Godhead  (2:9).  Of  the  eleven  occasions  in  which 
this  word  “fulness”  is  found  in  St.  Paul’s  Epistles  no 
fewer  than  six  are  in  Ephesians  and  Colossians,  and  there 
is  no  doubt  that  with  the  use  of  a  word  implying  permanent 
abode,  Christ’s  Godhead  is  regarded  as  altogether  apart 
from  time  and  other  limitations.  “Any  limitation  of  the 
meaning  of  pleroma  (fulness)  which  would  make  the 
indwelling  of  the  fulness  of  the  Godhead  in  Christ  a 
matter  either  of  the  future  or  of  the  past  only  is  incon¬ 
sistent  with  what  is  said  of  the  indwelling  of  the  pleroma 
in  Him  in  ch.  1 :19;  2:9.  The  reference  in  both  passages 
is  to  the  timeless  and  eternal  communication  of  the  God¬ 
head  from  the  Father  to  the  Son”  (Rutherford,  p.  56). 

This  permanent  fulness,  betokening  Deity,  is  intended 
for  the  purpose  of  reconciliation :  “To  reconcile  all  things 
unto  Himself.”  St.  Paul  teaches  similarly  elsewhere  that 
God  is  reconciling  the  universe  to  Himself  through  the 
Person  and  Work  of  Christ  (2  Cor.  5  :19).  In  Ephesians 
it  is  interesting  to  notice  the  illustration  of  the  emphasis 
placed  on  the  unity  of  the  Church  in  the  fact  that  this 
reconciliation  is  connected  with  the  Jews  and  Gentiles, 
both  being  made  into  one  body  for  the  permanent  habita¬ 
tion  of  God  (2:14-22).  When  it  is  said  that  Christ 
reconciles  “all  things,”  it  seems  to  mean  that  there  will 
be  no  discord,  but  it  has  often  been  pointed  out  that 
the  phrase  “things  under  the  earth”  (Phil.  2:10)  is 
significantly  omitted  here.  While  there  will,  of  course, 


The  Divine  Redeemer ,  1:18-20 


49 


be  submission  to  Christ,  either  willing  or  unwilling,  in 
order  that  He  may  be  acknowledged  by  all  as  Lord 
(Phil.  2:11),  yet  here,  where  spiritual  reconciliation  is 
mentioned,  there  is  a  limitation  to  “things  in  earth”  and 
“things  in  heaven.”  The  description  of  reconciliation  as 
affecting  all  things,  whether  things  on  earth  or  things  in 
heaven,  is  perhaps  a  hint  of  what  is  found  elsewhere,  that 
somehow  or  other  creation  has  been  affected  by  human 
sin  (Rom.  8:19-22).  “As  there  seems  to  be  a  physical 
unity  in  the  universe,  if  we  may  believe  the  guesses  of 
science,  so,  says  Holy  Scripture,  there  is  a  moral  and 
spiritual  unity  also  in  Jesus  Christ.” 

The  method  of  this  reconciliation  is  “the  blood  of  His 
Cross,”  by  which  God  has  “made  peace”  in  Christ.  It 
is  particularly  noteworthy  that  the  One  who  makes  the 
peace  is  God  the  Father.  This  is  another  reminder  that 
the  Atoning  Sacrifice  was  not  due  to  the  love  of  the  Son 
only,  but  also  to  the  love  of  the  Father.  “God  so  loved 
the  world,  that  He  gave”  (John  3:16) ;  “Christ  loved  us 
and  gave  Himself”  (Eph.  5:2). 

As  the  entire  passage  clearly  teaches  what  God  thinks 
of  Christ,  it  becomes  a  necessary  and  important  inquiry 
to  ask  what  we  think  of  Christ.  If  He  is  all  this  to  God, 
it  follows  that  He  ought  to  be  everything  to  us,  and  the 
whole  passage  may  be  summed  up  by  saying  that  Christ 
should  be  to  us  and  should  have  from  us  these  four 
realities: — (1)  Life.  He  is  at  once  the  Source  and  Sup¬ 
port  of  it.  And  our  life  should  belong  to  Him.  (2)  Love. 
This  should  be  both  a  proof  to  others  and  a  power  for 
helping  them.  (3)  Lordship.  As  He  is  first  in  the  uni¬ 
verse  and  in  the  Church,  He  ought  to  be  “pre-eminent” 
in  our  individual  experience.  (4)  Loyalty.  This  natu¬ 
rally  and  necessarily  follows  from  all  that  has  preceded. 
Loyalty  comes  from  a  French  word  associated  with  “law,” 
and  has  been  well  defined  as  “legality  with  love.” 


CHAPTER  VIII 

The  Great  Redemption,  1:21,23 


IT  is  natural  that  the  great  subject  of  Christology  should 
be  at  once  applied  to  Redemption,  and  in  these  verses 
we  see  some  of  the  fundamental  elements  of  that 
Gospel  of  Christ  which  arises  out  of  the  consideration  of 
His  Divine  Person  as  discussed  in  the  earlier  verses. 


I.  Alienation  (v.  21) 

It  is  interesting  to  notice  the  way  in  which  this  verse 
commences:  “And  you,”  just  as  in  the  parallel  passage 
(Eph.  2:1).  It  would  seem  as  though  in  both  cases  the 
Apostle,  having  dealt  with  Christ,  follows  this  by  calling 
attention  to  the  manner  in  which  Christ’s  work  is  intended 
for  those  to  whom  he  writes.  The  statement  of  their 
past  life  is  very  impressive  in  its  solemnity.  “Having 
become  permanently  estranged”  is  the  literal  rendering, 
showing  not  merely  the  former  state  from  which  they 
had  fallen,  but  the  present  fact  of  their  alienation.  This 
does  not  necessarily  mean  open  and  gross  sin,  but  that 
state  of  heart  which  comes  from  a  deliberate  opposition 
to  God.  We  notice,  first,  the  guilt  of  it,  incurring  con¬ 
demnation,  and  then  what  may  be  rightly  called  the  folly 
of  it,  because  sin  means  leaving  light  for  darkness, 
harmony  for  discord,  dignity  for  humiliation,  purity  for 
defilement,  and  life  for  death. 

This  estrangement  is  further  described  in  the  phrase: 
“Enemies  in  your  mind  by  wicked  works.”  Alienation 
involves  actual  hostility  to  God,  because  the  assertion  of 
self  must  of  necessity  imply  rebellion  against  Him.  This 
enmity  arises  first  in  the  mind  by  the  thoughts  and  feelings 
being  affected,  and  then  it  expresses  itself  in  “wicked 

50 


The  Great  Redemption ,  1:21-23 


51 


works/’  acts  of  hostility,  because  the  inner  life  is  morally 
bad.  This  picture  of  depravity  is  at  once  true  and  sad : 
true  to  what  sin  has  done  for  human  life;  sad  because 
it  means  the  loss  of  everything  that  tends  to  make 
life  blessed,  strong,  and  satisfying  (Eph.  2:12;  4:18; 
Rom.  8:7). 


II.  Reconciliation  (v.  21) 

Then  comes  the  blessed  and  glorious  contrast  between 
the  past  and  the  present.  They  were  at  one  time  alienated, 
“but  now”  has  come  reconciliation.  He  who  has  accom¬ 
plished  this  reconciliation  is  none  other  than  God  Himself, 
and  thereby  He  has  shown  His  condescension  by  the 
offended  One  actually  seeking  reconciliation.  This  is  the 
meaning  of  another  passage  in  which  the  Apostle  speaks 
of  God  in  Christ  reconciling  the  world  to  Himself  (2  Cor. 
5:18).  But  this  reconciliation  is  also  a  proof  of  God’s 
righteousness,  for  while  it  does  not  affect  the  Divine 
heart  (John  3:16),  it  of  necessity  involves  and  affects 
the  Divine  government.  There  could  be  no  reconciliation 
unless  it  were  accomplished  on  the  basis  of  the  Divine 
character  of  righteousness.  It  is  impossible  for  God  to  be 
indifferent  to  sin,  even  though  he  loves  the  sinner. 

Then  the  passage  shows  how  this  reconciliation  has  been 
brought  about :  “In  the  body  of  His  flesh  through  death.” 
In  these  words  is  a  brief  statement  of  the  Incarnation, 
“The  body  of  His  flesh,”  and  the  Atonement,  “through 
death.”  Christ  came  in  order  to  die,  and  when  it  is  said, 
“Jesus  came  into  the  world  to  save  sinners”  (1  Tim.  1 :15), 
we  see  both  the  fact  of  Bethlehem  and  the  fact  of  Calvary. 
Christ  died  for  the  ungodly,  the  just  for  the  unjust, 
and  sinful  men  are  reconciled  to  God  by  the  death  of  His 
Son  (Isa.  53:6). 


52 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


% 


III.  Expectation  (v.  22) 

The  purpose  of  this  redeeming  work  of  Christ  is  now 
stated.  The  word  “present”  is  particularly  interesting  for 
its  three  different  applications,  each  suggesting  a  helpful 
truth.  Sometimes  a  sacrifice  is  presented  to  God 
(Rom.  12:1).  Or  it  may  be  a  bride  presented  to  her 
husband  (2  Cor.  11:2;  Eph.  5:27),  Then,  too,  a  sub¬ 
ject  is  presented  at  court  (2  Cor.  4:14).  Whatever  be 
the  precise  meaning  here,  it  is  a  beautiful  thought  that 
Christ,  having  redeemed  us  by  His  death,  is  to  “present 
us  before  the  throne  of  His  glory  with  exceeding  joy” 
(Jude  v.  24).  The  three  words  indicative  of  the  condition 
of  the  believer  as  thus  presented  are  also  noteworthy: 
“holy,”  “unblamable,”  “unreprovable,”  in  His  sight.  There 
is  to  be  entire  consecration  (“holy”) ;  the  absence  of  all 
censure  (“unblamable”),  and  the  absence  of  every  accusa¬ 
tion  (“unreprovable”).  This  threefold  description  may 
perhaps  be  regarded  as  inward,  outward,  and  upward,  or 
internal,  external,  and  eternal  (Rom.  8:33;  Heb.  9:14). 
Nothing  less  than  this  is  to  be  the  crown  and  culmination 
of  our  Lord’s  redemption. 

IV.  Continuation  (v.  23) 

As  the  past  and  the  future  have  been  considered,  so 
now  comes  the  thought  of  “the  little  while  between.”  The 
believer  who  has  been  redeemed  and  who  is  to  be  presented 
is,  meanwhile,  to  continue  in  the  faith.  Not  that  there 
is  any  doubt  of  his  being  in  the  faith,  indicated  by  the 
word  “if,”  but  rather  that  his  present  continuance  is  a 
proof  he  is  in  the  faith.  “Since  ye  abide.”  This  position 
is  one  of  (a)  permanent  foundation  and  (b)  steadfastness 
with  (c)  the  absence  of  any  continuing  movement  which 
tends  to  shake  him  from  “the  hope  originated  by  the 
Gospel.”  Those  who  have  accepted  the  redemption  find 


The  Great  Redemption ,  1:21-23  53 

themselves  firmly  fixed  and  grounded  in  Christ  Jesus  and 
rejoice  in  hope  of  the  glory  of  God  (1  Cor.  15:58; 
Eph.  3 :1 7). 


V.  Evangelisation  (v.  23) 

At  this  point  the  Apostle  passes  from  the  Christians 
of  Colosse  to  himself  as  a  preacher  of  the  Gospel,  and 
there  are  three  elements  of  that  Gospel  which  call  for 
attention:  (a)  it  was  heard;  ( b )  it  was  preached  in  all 
the  world;  and  (c)  it  was  a  Gospel  of  which  Paul  was 
a  minister.  It  is  interesting  to  notice  that  in  verse  7  we 
have  a  minister  of  Christ ;  here  a  minister  of  the  Gospel, 
and  in  verse  25  a  minister  of  the  Church. 

Thus  we  see  here  the  whole  Gospel,  including  sin, 
atonement,  acceptance,  holiness,  salvation,  and  every  part 
of  it  proclaimed  all  over  the  world  by  those  who  have 
received  it.  It  is  indeed  a  Gospel,  “good  news,”  and  is 
intended  for  the  hardest  hearts,  and  for  the  most  varied 
lives.  As  we  consider  its  elements  of  power  and  blessed¬ 
ness,  we  see  our  duty  is  (1)  to  believe  it,  (2)  to  receive 
it,  (3)  to  live  it,  (4)  to  enjoy  it,  and  (5)  to  spread  it. 


CHAPTER  IX 

The  Christian  Minister,  1:24,25 

FROM  the  fact  of  the  universality  of  the  Gospel 
(v.  25)  the  Apostle  proceeds  to  state  some  of  his 
personal  experiences.  Hitherto  he  has  been  con¬ 
cerned  with  our  Lord’s  relation  to  the  universe,  to  the 
Church,  and  to  the  Christians  in  Colosse.  Now  he  refers 
to  himself  and  his  own  work,  first,  in  relation  to  the  whole 
Church  (vs.  24-29),  and  then,  especially,  to  the  Church 
of  Colosse  (2:1-5).  The  thought  of  the  Gospel  (v.  23) 
naturally  leads  him  to  think  of  his  own  opportunity  as 
a  preacher  of  it,  and  he  is  evidently  glad  of  the  oppor¬ 
tunity  of  glorying  in  his  office.  One  characteristic,  in 
particular,  of  his  ministry  is  here  mentioned,  the  element 
of  joy,  and  in  so  writing  he  indicates  what  should  be  one 
of  the  features  of  our  life  and  work  for  Christ. 

I.  The  Character  of  His  Ministry 

He  rejoices.  This  is  the  predominant  fact,  and  the 
emphasis  on  himself,  “I  rejoice,”  seems  to  indicate 
his  experience  of  joy,  even  though  he  was  personally 
unworthy  of  this  great  office.  One  of  the  finest  books 
written  in  modern  days  is  entitled  The  Joy  of  the  Ministry, 
by  the  late  Bishop  Wynne,  and  the  very  title  suggests 
what  should  be  the  dominant  feature  of  our  service  for 
Christ.  There  is  also  an  emphasis  on  “now,”  and  Light- 
foot  suggests  that  the  force  of  it  is,  “when  I  see  all  the 
glory  of  bearing  a  part  in  this  magnificent  work.”  Or 
it  may  be  that  he  was  ready  to  rejoice  even  though  in 
chains  in  Rome.  Nothing  should  be  allowed  to  stop  his 
satisfaction,  for,  even  though  he  is  in  the  furnace,  he  will 
continue  his  joy.  It  is  easy  to  be  joyful  when  all  things 

54 


The  Christian  Minister,  1:24,25 


55 


are  bright,  but  it  is  very  different  when,  as  with  the 
Apostle,  a  sudden  check  had  come  to  his  active  career 
and  he  was  compelled  to  wait  in  prison  for  the  day  of 
trial  and  release. 

II.  The  Cause  of  the  Joy 

By  a  remarkable  paradox  he  speaks  of  joy  in  connection 
with  his  sufferings.  They  were  a  present  and  continuous 
fact  in  his  experience;  indeed,  they  were  the  sphere  in 
which  he  may  have  been  said  to  live.  And  yet,  although 
these  sufferings  were  still  existing,  he  was  ready  and 
willing  to  rejoice.  This  is  only  one  instance  and  illus¬ 
tration  of  the  Apostle’s  joy,  as  he  endured  all  things 
for  Christ  in  his  ministry  (Acts  20:23,  24;  Rom.  5:3; 
Phil.  2:17;  Heb.  12:2). 

This  suffering  was  for  the  sake  of  others,  on  their 
behalf,  for  their  advantage  (2  Cor.  1 :4,  5),  and  he  speaks 
of  supplementing  a  deficiency,  as  though  something  had 
been  left  over  for  him  to  endure.  What  this  means  will 
best  be  understood  when  we  see  that  his  personal  suffer¬ 
ings  were  regarded  as  identical  with  those  of  Christ.  The 
phrase,  “the  afflictions  of  Christ,”  is  unique,  and  can  only 
mean  the  afflictions  which  He  Himself  endured — His 
own  afflictions.  The  Apostle  supplied  what  was  lacking 
in  these.  But  to  what  afflictions  of  Christ  can  he  refer? 
Certainly  not  to  His  expiatory  sufferings,  which  were 
perfect  and  complete  (v.  20),  but  to  those  individual 
afflictions  in  which  He  lived  during  His  earthly  life,  and 
in  fellowship  with  which  the  Apostle  and  all  Christians 
are  to  live  today.  So  that  whilst,  from  the  standpoint  of 
sacrifice,  there  is,  of  course,  nothing  to  add  to  the  suffer¬ 
ings  of  Christ,  yet  from  the  standpoint  of  personal  life 
and  sympathy  there  is  very  much  in  which  we  can  be 
identified  with  Him. 

This  suffering  is  intended  for  the  whole  Church 


56 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


It  is  not  only  for  individuals,  but  for  the  entire  Body, 
and  it  is  particularly  interesting  to  notice  the  contrast 
between  Paul’s  literal  “flesh”  and  Christ’s  spiritual 
“Body,”  the  Church.  It  is  a  beautiful  and  inspiring 
thought  that  each  Christian  can  and  should  endure 
afflictions  on  behalf  of  the  entire  body  of  Christians.  This 
is  the  real  meaning  of  suffering,  namely,  the  education, 
training,  and  disciplining  of  the  soul  (Heb.  5:8).  While 
we  cannot  share  Christ’s  sufferings  which  wrought  salva¬ 
tion,  we  are  able  to  share  in  His  sympathy  and  personal 
afflictions.  There  is  no  possibility  of  merit  on  the  part 
of  any  Christian  or  on  the  part  of  the  entire  Church, 
because  our  Lord’s  sufferings  were  sufficient,  and  more 
than  sufficient,  to  atone  for  the  sins  of  the  whole  world. 
But  for  the  establishment  of  the  Church  there  was  still 
suffering  to  be  endured  after  the  Atonement  had  been 
made,  and  wherever  the  Apostles  went  they  suffered  as 
they  preached,  and  preached  as  they  suffered.  In  these 
afflictions  we  can  share,  and  this  is  the  solemn,  inspiring, 
and  beautiful  truth  the  Apostle  emphasises  here.  We 
must,  therefore,  not  be  afraid  to  face  discipline  if  called 
upon  to  suffer,  for  thereby  we  shall  be  permitted  to  set 
forward  the  progress  of  the  Church  and  the  accomplish¬ 
ment  of  God’s  purpose. 

III.  The  Circumstances  of  the  Ministry 

The  Apostle  calls  himself  a  minister  of  the  Church 
(v.  25),  just  as  he  had  spoken  of  himself  as  the  minister 
of  the  Gospel  (v.  23).  He  also  describes  himself  else¬ 
where  as  the  minister  of  Christ  (2  Cor.  11:23)  and  a 
minister  of  God  (2  Cor.  6:4).  These  various  aspects  of 
service  show  how  we  can  work  and  accomplish  God’s  will. 

This  ministry  is  described  as  “according  to  the  dispensa¬ 
tion  of  God.”  The  word  “dispensation”  seems  to  suggest 
the  entrustment  of  a  great  responsibility,  like  the  manage¬ 
ment  of  an  estate. 


The  Christian  Minister ,  1:24,25 


57 


The  work  is  described  as  intended  “to  fulfil  the  word 
of  God,”  that  is,  to  bring  to  completion  the  message  of 
God’s  grace  (Rom.  15:9).  The  Apostle  was  not  content 
with  anything  perfunctory;  he  put  his  whole  soul  into 
everything  he  did,  and  thus  “fulfilled”  or  “filled  full” 
the  Divine  Gospel  entrusted  to  him. 

As  we  contemplate  these  verses  and  ponder  their  mean¬ 
ing  afresh  with  reference  to  Christian  life  and  work,  we 
cannot  help  noticing  the  features  implied  all  through, 
which  are  as  applicable  to  us  today  as  to  the  Apostle. 
These  may  be  summed  up  in  five  words,  each  of  which 
carries  its  own  meaning  and  message  to  those  who  belong 
to  the  Lord.  (1)  Sonship.  This  is  the  basis  and  pre¬ 
supposition  of  all  true  work.  (2)  Service.  We  are  called 
upon  to  witness,  to  war,  and  to  work  in  connection  with 
the  Gospel  of  God.  (3)  Stewardship.  This  implies 
responsible  work  and  no  ordinary  service.  As  we  deepen 
in  experience  of  Christ  He  entrusts  to  us  still  more 
important  tasks,  and  the  true  ministers  are  honoured  by 
being  called  “stewards  of  the  mysteries  of  God”  (1  Cor. 
4:1).  (4)  Suffering.  Our  task  of  witnessing  to  Christ 

will  often  involve  opposition,  and  even  hostility,  and  in 
all  ages  God’s  servants  have  had  to  “endure  hardship.” 
This  is  a  glory  if  only  we  regard  our  suffering  as  the 
Apostle  thought  of  his,  as  helping  forward  the  cause 
of  Christ  and  as  glorifying  God.  (5)  Satisfaction.  In  all 
life  and  work  for  God  there  wells  up  in  the  heart  a  spring 
of  joy  that  God  should  have  deigned  to  receive  us  and 
then  to  use  us  in  His  vineyard.  There  is  nothing  on 
earth  to  compare  with  the  essential  and  perennial  joy  that 
comes  from  faithful  effort  for  our  God  and  Saviour. 


CHAPTER  X 


The  Christian  Ministry,  1:26-29 

THE  Apostle’s  reference  to  the  ministry  (v.  29) 
naturally  leads  to  a  fuller  explanation  of  “the  Word 
of  God”  which  he  proclaimed.  Whenever  a  new 
ambassador  comes  from  a  foreign  court  he  has  to  present 
his  letters  of  introduction,  by  which  he  is  proved  to  be 
the  authorised  representative  of  his  country.  These  letters 
are  most  naturally  called  “credentials.”  St.  Paul  here 
may  be  said  to  present  his  “credentials”  as  “an  ambassador 
for  Christ”  (2  Cor.  5:20),  and  the  features  of  his  min¬ 
istry  are  particularly  worthy  of  careful  consideration, 
because  of  their  application  to  all  who  proclaim  the 
Gospel  of  Christ. 

I.  The  Character  of  the  Ministry 

He  calls  the  Divine  Word  “the  riches  of  the  glory  of 
this  mystery,”  and  each  term  needs  thorough  attention. 
In  speaking  of  “riches,”  he  naturally  thinks  of  the  abun¬ 
dance  whereby  its  possessors  are  made  rich.  These  Epistles 
of  the  captivity  are  particularly  noteworthy  for  their  ref¬ 
erence  to  the  wealth  of  the  Gospel  (Eph.  1:7,  18;  2:7; 
3:8,  16;  Col.  2:2).  The  word  “glory”  is  also  found 
frequently  to  describe  the  magnificence  and  splendour  of 
the  message.  But  the  word  “mystery”  is  specially 
significant.  It  is  found  21  times  in  the  New  Testament, 
and  invariably  means  something  that  was  once  hidden, 
but  is  now  revealed.  Here  the  Apostle  is  writing  of  what 
apparently  had  always  been  hidden,  and  only  revealed 
a  little  time  before,  something,  therefore,  which,  until 
that  revelation,  had  not  formed  a  part  of  the  Divine 
message  which  he  had  to  make  known.  This  seems  to 

58 


The  Christian  Ministry,  1:26-29 


59 


have  been  the  special  feature  of  the  stewardship  com¬ 
mitted  to  him  (v.  25;  Eph.  3:2,  9).  What,  then,  does 
he  mean  by  the  “mystery”  which  he  defines  as  “Christ 
in  you  the  hope  of  glory”?  At  first  sight  it  would  seem 
as  though  he  only  meant  that  those  who  belonged  to 
Christ  are  saved  by  Him,  but  when  the  phrase  “hidden 
from  the  ages  and  from  the  generations,  but  now  made 
manifest”  is  considered,  there  must  be  a  reference  to 
some  special  revelation  which  had  not  been  known  in  old 
days.  Salvation  by  Christ  had  assuredly  been  revealed 
in  the  older  Scriptures  (Gen.  12:3;  Isa.  ch.  53),  and 
we  are  also  told  that  Christ  “illuminated”  older  truths 
through  the  Gospel  (2  Tim.  1:10,  Greek).  And  yet  in 
the  parallel  passage,  Eph.  3  :2-9,  the  mystery  is  said  to 
have  been  hidden  from  all  previous  periods  and  not  to 
have  been  announced  until  revealed  to  St.  Paul.  This 
seems  to  show  that  there  must  be  something  more  in 
the  word  than  mere  salvation  in  Christ.  The  Ephesian 
passage  clearly  indicates  that  the  reference  is  not  to  the 
salvation  of  Gentiles  by  Christ,  which  was  no  secret  at 
all,  but  to  the  truth  that  the  Gentiles  should  be  associated 
with  the  Jews  in  one  spiritual  body  on  terms  of  perfect 
equality  in  Christ,  and  this,  it  would  seem,  is  the  meaning 
of  the  text  here.  Christ  was  to  be  in  the  Gentiles  “the 
hope  of  glory”  in  its  fullest  sense,  including  all  the  bless¬ 
ings  of  the  Gospel.  Gentile  believers  are  to  enjoy  the 
hope  of  supreme  glory,  and  Jewish  Christians  can  ob¬ 
viously  have  nothing  more  than  this.  If,  therefore,  this 
is  the  meaning  of  the  passage,  as  it  certainly  is  of  Ephe¬ 
sians,  the  truth  refers  to  Christian  fellowship,  Gentile 
believers  being  equally  enriched  in  the  fulness  of  the 
blessing  of  Christ.  This  would  mean  not  only  equality 
of  acceptance  in  Christ,  but  equality  of  association  in 
the  Church,  which  is  His  Body. 

The  three  words  are  also  well  worthy  of  notice  in  the 


60 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


reverse  order  “mystery”  “glory,”  “wealth.”  Dr.  F.  B. 
Meyer  has  somewhere  used  the  apt  illustration  of  a  man 
coming  to  his  old  home,  after  many  years  of  absence 
in  a  foreign  country,  and  sitting  down  with  his  mother 
to  a  meal.  At  first  she  does  not  recognise  him,  and  this 
means  “mystery” ;  then  he  reveals  himself  to  her,  and 
the  result  is  the  “glory  of  the  mystery”;  and,  lastly,  he 
tells  her  of  his  wonderful  prosperity  in  the  far  country, 
and  of  the  riches  he  has  brought  home  to  her,  and  this 
is  the  “wealth  of  the  glory  of  the  mystery.”  So  it  is 
in  things  spiritual;  at  first  we  do  not  realise  all  that  is 
stored  up  in  Christ,  but  He  reveals  Himself  to  us,  and 
in  that  revelation  will  be  found  the  “riches  of  His  grace.” 
This  is  the  great  and  precious  thought  of  the  Apostle 
when  he  says  of  God,  “He  that  spared  not  His  own  Son, 
but  delivered  Him  up  for  us  all,  how  shall  He  not  also 
freely  with  Him  give  us  all  things?”  (Rom.  8:32.) 

II.  The  Theme  of  the  Ministry 

The  passage  tells  us  four  things  which  sum  up  the 
essential  features  of  Christian  preaching.  It  is  the 
proclamation  of  a  Person,  “Whom”  we  preach.  While 
it  is  true,  of  course,  that  in  a  sense  we  can  also  speak 
of  “what”  we  preach,  yet  this  is  only  secondary.  The 
theme  of  Christianity  is  not  a  theory,  not  a  set  of  rules, 
not  simply  a  code  of  morals,  not  even  a  system  of  truth, 
but  a  living  Person  and  all  these  in  Him.  It  is  the 
peculiar  characteristic  of  the  religion  of  Christ  that  we 
cannot  take  the  message  and  put  aside  the  Speaker  of 
the  message.  There  are  great  teachers  in  the  world,  like 
Confucius,  Socrates,  Buddha,  Mohammed,  in  whose 
writings  may  be  found  many  truths,  but  those  truths  can 
be  enjoyed  without  any  reference  to  the  person  who 
uttered  them.  The  sacred  books  of  the  East  may  be 
read  and  appreciated  without  knowing  or  caring  who  wrote 


The  Christian  Ministry ,  1:26-29  61 

them.  But  it  is  altogether  different  with  the  teaching  of 
Christ,  for  His  Person  is  inextricably  bound  up  with 
His  teaching.  All  that  He  says  centres  round  Himself. 
If  He  speaks  of  the  kingdom,  He  is  the  King;  if  He 
declares  the  terms  of  entrance,  it  is  faith  in  Him.  The 
cause  He  advocated,  the  salvation  He  brought,  the  future 
He  promised,  all  depend  on  Himself. 

This  Person  is  explained  in  the  text  in  one  word, 
“Christ.”  Here  come  in  the  facts  of  His  life  and  work 
in  order  to  show  the  value  of  His  person.  The  word 
“Christ”  means  a  great  deal  to  the  Jews,  for  it  is  the 
equivalent  of  their  word  “Messiah,”  the  Anointed  One, 
and  in  it  are  comprised  all  God’s  purposes  and  prepara¬ 
tions  for  the  redemption  of  mankind.  It  looks  back  to 
Old  Testament  scenes  from  the  Garden  of  Eden,  through 
type  and  prophecy,  to  the  time  of  our  Lord.  It  means  the 
One  set  apart  as  Prophet,  Priest,  and  King;  Prophet  to 
reveal,  Priest  to  redeem,  and  King  to  rule. 

Then  follow  two  little  words,  “in  you,”  and  without 
these  the  former  truth  would  be  virtually  useless.  The 
Objective  Person,  Christ,  must  be  inwardly  appropriated. 
It  is  not  enough  that  He  came,  lived,  died,  and  rose.  He 
must  be  personally  abiding  in  the  heart  of  each  one.  Those 
who  accept  intellectually  the  facts  of  Christ’s  Person  and 
Work  find  that  these  avail  them  not,  until  they  have 
made  Christ  personally  their  own  in  the  confidence  of 
the  heart.  Christ  must  be  welcomed  into  the  soul  and 
dwell  there  by  faith. 

The  chain  is  completed  by  the  phrase,  “the  hope  of 
glory,”  which  refers  to  the  future,  as  the  other  two  truths 
refer  to  past  and  present.  It  is  impossible  to  avoid 
inquiring  about  and  looking  towards  the  future.  With 
the  uncertainty  of  life  we  naturally  ask  whether  we  can 
be  sure  of  the  life  to  come,  and  the  only  answer  is, 
“Christ  in  you,  the  hope  of  glory.”  It  is  sin  that  makes 


62 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


the  future  uncertain,  and  when  this  is  put  away  through 
the  acceptance  of  Christ,  all  fear  of  the  future  goes  with 
it,#and  with  the  consciousness  that  Christ  is  ours  we  face 
the  future  confidently  and  cheerfully,  knowing  that  the 
possession  of  Him  is  the  pledge  and  foretaste  of  future 
blessedness.  Thus,  we  see  that  Christ  is  All-sufficient. 

This,  then,  is  the  blessed  and  glorious  theme  of  the 
ministry:  Christ  the  Divine  Person;  the  Anointed  Sa¬ 
viour  ;  the  Revealer  of  God ;  the  Atonement  for  Sin ;  the 
Guide,  Satisfaction,  and  Completion  of  Life;  the  Refuge 
of  the  Past;  the  Stay  of  the  Present;  the  Hope  of  the 
Future. 

III.  The  Methods  of  the  Ministry 

We  must  now  see  how  this  great  Theme  is  to  be  brought 
in  contact  with  men,  and,  again,  there  are  four  thoughts 
to  ponder.  The  Apostle  speaks  first  of  “warning.”  This 
is  especially  necessary  in  the  case  of  those  who  have  not 
received  Christ,  because  it  tells  of  sin  and  its  sure  results. 
Yet  even  afterwards  this  method  must  be  prominent, 
because  believers  are  often  apt  to  have  superficial  views  of 
sin  and  its  consequences.  “Warning”  is  like  salt,  which 
prevents  surrounding  corruption,  and  may  be  described 
as  the  moral  aspect  of  Christianity.  The  New  Testament 
claims  to  apply  the  principles  of  Christ  to  every  part  of 
life,  and  the  Christian  preacher  and  teacher  needs  to  sound 
this  note  of  “warning”  to  the  indifferent  and  careless,  to 
the  presumptuous  and  wilful,  to  show  them  their  dangers 
and  to  claim  their  lives  for  Christ. 

Then  will  follow  “teaching.”  This  seems  to  have  special 
reference  to  those  who  have  begun  the  Christian  life,  and 
may,  perhaps,  be  called  the  intellectual  side  of  the  Gospel. 
Teaching  is  needed  at  every  stage  of  the  journey,  for 
the  Christian  religion  is  essentially  educational.  At  every 
step  of  life’s  pathway,  from  the  beginning  to  the  end, 


The  Christian  Ministry ,  1:26-29 


63 


we  need  the  fingerpost  of  Divine  teaching,  saying,  “This 
is  the  way;  walk  ye  in  it.”  Teaching  is  not  merely  to 
be  a  quiet  resting-place,  but  a  fresh  starting-point,  inform¬ 
ing  the  mind  and  guiding  the  soul  in  everything. 

The  words  “every  man”  are  found  three  times  in  this 
one  verse,  and  they  show  clearly  the  Apostle’s  idea.  The 
false  teachers  against  whom  he  was  writing  had  much  to 
say  of  a  wisdom  for  a  peculiar  few  only,  but  St.  Paul’s 
soul  spurned  such  restriction  and  rejoiced  in  the  Gospel 
for  all.  He  maintains  that  Christianity  also  has  a  wisdom, 
but  it  is  for  everybody,  and  the  doors  are  flung  open  and 
all  are  invited  to  enter.  This  is  the  universality  of  the 
Gospel,  involving  a  message  for  all  nations,  all  capacities, 
all  stations  of  life,  a  message  for  rich  and  poor,  old  and 
young,  respectable  and  outcast,  peer  and  peasant,  because, 
amid  all  the  differences  of  sphere  and  capacity,  there  is 
the  same  sin,  the  same  heart,  the  same  need,  and  therefore 
the  same  salvation. 

But  these  words  “every  man”  also  suggest  the  individual 
application  of  the  Gospel,  not  only  a  message  for  all,  but 
a  message  for  each,  the  Christian  preacher  being  able 
to  say,  “I  have  a  message  from  God  unto  thee.”  This 
individual  and  solitary  aspect  needs  to  be  emphasised. 
Our  lives  are  our  own,  and,  notwithstanding  our  sur¬ 
roundings,  each  one  of  us  lives  in  a  little  world  of  his 
own.  And  so  God’s  truth  comes  to  man  alone,  dealing 
with  him  as  an  individual,  not  merely  as  one  of  a  number. 

The  phrase  “in  all  wisdom”  further  emphasises  the 
difference  between  the  false  teachers  and  St.  Paul.  He 
claimed  to  teach  every  single  man  all  the  wisdom  that  he 
could  grasp,  dealing  with  him  according  to  his  nature  and 
as  far  as  his  capacity  allowed.  As  each  man  has  his  own 
peculiar  characteristics,  it  was  St.  Paul’s  aim  to  deal 
with  him  wisely  by  giving  him  food  convenient,  and  all 
that  he  could  accept  and  assimilate. 


64 


Christ  Pre-eminent 

IV.  The  Object  of  the  Ministry 

Why  does  the  Apostle  do  all  this  work?  He  has  a 
definite  aim,  a  specific  object,  in  what  he  has  to  preach 
and  teach.  This  is  first  suggested  by  the  word  “perfect/’ 
which  means  here,  as  often  elsewhere,  maturity,  ripeness 
of  character  and  experience.  The  term  “perfection”  never 
means  sinlessness,  but  almost  always  the  mature  in  con¬ 
trast  with  the  immature  believer.  From  the  moment  of  our 
conversion  we  are  to  make  progress  until  we  all  arrive 
at  the  full  ripeness  of  our  position  in  Christ  (Eph. 
4:13). 

This  maturity  is  intended  for  all,  and  once  again  the 
Apostle  emphasises  this  by  using  the  term  “every  man.” 
No  sin  must  be  excused,  no  weakness  palliated,  even  with 
differences  of  capacity.  Each  capacity  must  be  and  can  be 
ripe  and  mature  up  to  its  limits.  The  motive  is  further 
explained  by  the  term  “in  Christ  Jesus,”  showing  that 
all  this  is  to  be  realised,  not  in  ourselves,  but  in  Him. 
As  “in  Christ”  is  the  source  of  our  life  here,  so  “in  Christ” 
will  be  the  source  of  our  maturity  hereafter.  It  is  specially 
notable  that  we  start  here  below  with  “Christ  in  us,”  and 
we  end  yonder  above  with  ourselves  “in  Christ.” 

But  there  is  another  word  which  must  not  be  over¬ 
looked,  “that  we  may  present.”  Here  is  the  beautiful 
picture  of  the  minister  presenting  his  converts  to  Christ, 
introducing  them,  as  such,  to  Him.  As  we  have  seen, 
the  thought  finds  a  threefold  illustration  in  the  New  Testa¬ 
ment  (2  Cor.  11 :2 ;  Eph.  5  :27 ;  Col.  1 :22).  Just  as  at  the 
royal  levee  or  drawing-room  some  are  presented  to  the 
king  or  queen  by  others,  so  here  we  have  the  picture  of 
the  minister  presenting  his  disciples  to  the  Master.  This 
is  the  goal  of  the  Christian  worker;  for  this  he  lives  and 
labours.  Happy  is  the  man  who  is  thus  privileged;  it 
is  the  highest  possible  joy. 


The  Christian  Ministry ,  1:26-29 


65 


V.  The  Accompaniment  of  the  Ministry 

The  Apostle  not  only  preached,  but  worked  (v.  29), 
and  everything  he  said  and  did  was  with  reference  to  the 
end,  “whereunto  I  labour  also.”  His  position  as  an  Apostle 
of  Christ  involved  far  more  than  a  mere  proclamation 
of  the  Gospel.  It  included  effort  and  fatigue.  Like  an 
athlete  in  a  contest,  the  Apostle  strove  with  all  his  might, 
and  yet  there  was  the  inspiration  that,  whilst  he  worked, 
Christ  was  working  also,  and  in  proportion  as  the  Apostle 
laboured,  Christ  strove  mightily  in  him  to  accomplish  all 
this  purpose.  It  is  one  of  the  most  encouraging  assur¬ 
ances  of  Christian  service  that  our  work  may  and  can 
be  done  in  exact  proportion  to  God’s  work  in  us.  “It 
is  God  who  worketh  in  you  both  to  will  and  to  work” 
(Phil.  2:13).  In  all  our  service,  therefore,  let  us  keep  in 
mind  that,  as  we  labour,  we  are  striving  according  to  His 
working,  which  worketh  in  us  mightily. 

As  we  review  this  wonderful  passage,  telling  of  min¬ 
istry,  we  cannot  help  noticing  with  wonder  and  thankful¬ 
ness  (1)  the  magnificence  of  the  theme,  (2)  the  sim¬ 
plicity  of  the  purpose,  (3)  the  thoroughness  of  the  method, 
and  (4)  the  reality  of  the  life.  May  God  enable  us  to 
be  equally  faithful  “ministers  of  His  that  do  His  pleasure.” 


5 


CHAPTER  XI 
Spiritual  Concern,  2:1-5 

THE  division  of  chapters  at  this  point  is  somewhat 
misleading,  because  it  tends  to  prevent  our  observ¬ 
ing  that  the  subject  is  continuous,  dealing  with  St. 
Paul’s  own  ministry.  The  opening  word  “for”  clearly 
shows  the  connection.  He  has  already  referred  to  his 
preaching  and  effort  on  behalf  of  the  Christians  in  Colosse, 
and  now  he  will  show  that  he  has  anxiety  as  well.  It  is 
a  wonderful  unveiling  of  a  minister’s  heart,  a  revelation 
of  his  true  attitude  to  Christian  converts.  Each  point 
calls  for  special  meditation  as  expressive  of  what  the  real 
Christian  worker  ought  to  be  and  do. 

I.  The  Prayer 

He  wishes  them  to  know  of  his  intense  effort  on  their 
behalf,  and  he  uses,  as  elsewhere,  the  figure  of  the  athlete 
(1  Tim.  6:12;  2  Tim.  4:7).  The  conflict  to  which  he 
refers  shows  his  earnestness  (1:29;  4:12),  and  at  the 
same  time  his  unselfish  sympathy.  All  this  is  the  more 
remarkable  because  the  Apostle  was  not  personally  known 
to  the  Colossian  Christians,  and  when  anxiety  is  felt  for 
those  who  are  unknown,  the  reality  of  the  feeling,  as  well 
as  the  consciousness  of  the  peril,  are  the  more  readily 
understood. 

II.  The  Purpose 

This  effort  and  conflict  of  prayer  had  a  definite  object. — 
1.  “That  their  hearts  may  be  comforted.”  The  heart 
is,  as  always,  the  centre  of  the  moral  being,  including 
intellect,  feeling,  and  will,  and  the  word  rendered  “com¬ 
forted”  has  a  threefold  meaning,  embracing  strength, 


66 


Spiritual  Concern,  2:1-5 


67 


courage  and  consolation.  The  Apostle  wishes  them  to  be 
strong,  fearless,  and  full  of  good  cheer  against  the  errors 
that  face  them. 

2.  Then  he  desired  that  they  should  be  “knit  together 
in  love.”  The  word  translated  “knit  together”  means 
“compacted,”  or  harmoniously  fitted  (Eph.  4:16),  and 
this  is  to  be  in  the  bond  of  love,  doubtless  referring  to 
God’s  love  to  us  in  Christ. 

3.  All  this  was  to  lead  to  “all  riches  of  the  full  assur¬ 
ance  of  understanding.”  There  was  to  be  no  vagueness 
or  uncertainty  in  their  lives,  but  the  very  opposite,  a  certi¬ 
tude  that  would  enable  them  to  meet  every  peril  with 
courageous  confidence.  Assurance  is  the  purpose  of  God 
in  connection  with  Christianity  (Luke  1:4),  and  when 
writing  to  the  Thessalonians  the  Apostle  spoke  of  his 
gospel  as  having  come  to  them  “in  much  assurance” 
(1  Thess.  1 :5).  It  is  interesting  to  notice  that  the  word 
found  here  occurs  in  three  different  connections ;  the  “full 
assurance  of  faith”  (Heb.  10:22),  referring  specially  to 
the  past;  the  “full  assurance  of  hope”  (Heb.  6:11), 
referring  solely  to  the  future;  and  this  passage,  “the 
full  assurance  of  understanding,”  with  its  definite  bear¬ 
ing  on  the  present.  The  Apostle  was  particularly  desirous 
that  these  people  should  enter  fully  into  the  certitude 
that  comes  with  true  Christianity. 

III.  The  Privilege 

Everything  was  intended  to  lead  up  to  a  knowledge  of 
“the  mystery  of  God,  even  Christ.”  As  in  a  former 
passage  (1:27),  “mystery”  means  a  secret  once  hidden 
but  now  revealed,  and  Christ  was  the  specific  “mystery” 
which  they  were  to  know.  In  Him  were  hidden  “all  the 
treasures  of  wisdom  and  knowledge,”  and  thereby  they 
were  shown  that  there  was  no  need  to  go  outside  Christ 
for  all  the  knowledge,  wisdom,  and  certitude  which  they 


68 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


rightly  needed.  The  emphasis  on  the  word  “are”  indicates 
that  these  things  were  realities,  and  that  in  possessing 
Christ  they  possessed  all  things. 

IV.  The  Precaution 

At  this  point  the  Apostle  tells  the  Colossian  Christians 
that  he  is  saying  this  in  order  that  they  may  not  be  led 
astray.  He  does  not  for  a  moment  assume  that  they  had 
wandered,  but  only  warns  them  against  the  possibility. 
In  every  connection  it  can  be  said  without  hesitation  that 
the  only  safeguard  against  error  is  a  full  knowledge  of 
Christ. 


V.  The  Peril 

The  particular  danger  that  lay  before  them  was  that 
of  false  reasoning  based  on  persuasive  speech.  It  was  on 
account  of  this  peril  that  he  had  spoken  so  strongly  about 
himself  (v.  1),  about  them  (v.  2),  and  about  Christ 
(v.  3).  People  are  easily  influenced  by  forms  of  speech, 
and  very  often  a  charm  of  manner  and  an  eloquent  utter¬ 
ance  will  hide  the  falsity  of  the  reasoning  of  the  speaker. 

VI.  The  Praise 

And  yet  although  the  Apostle  spoke  in  this  way  he  was 
not  unmindful  of  the  reality  and  strength  of  the  Colossian 
Christians.  He  was  absent  in  the  flesh,  but  he  was  present 
with  them  in  the  spirit,  looking  with  joy  upon  them  and 
feeling  satisfied  that  all  was  well  with  them,  even  though 
they  were  surrounded  by  danger.  This  is  a  fine  feature 
of  the  true  Christian  worker  who  sees  the  good  points 
in  those  whom  he  wishes  to  help,  and  by  recognising  their 
strength  he  encourages  them  to  greater  efforts  in  the 
same  direction. 


Spiritual  Concern ,  2:1-5 


69 


VII.  The  Power 

The  specific  point  of  his  appreciation  is  what  he  calls 
their  “order”  and  the  “strength”  of  their  faith  towards 
Christ.  By  most  writers  this  phrase  is  thought  to  be  a 
military  term,  meaning  “orderly  array.” 

As  we  look  over  these  words  which  are  such  a  wonderful 
outpouring  of  the  Apostle’s  soul,  we  notice  three  special 
points  which  are  particularly  applicable  to  the  ministry, 
though  they  are,  of  course,  true  of  all  who  are  “watching 
for  souls.” 

1.  Ministerial  Concern.  The  Apostle  here,  as  in  many 
other  places,  is  particularly  desirous  that  believers  should 
lead  the  fullest,  strongest,  and  best  life,  and  for  this  reason 
he  prays  for  them,  as  he  so  often  does  elsewhere.  There 
is  no  doubt  that  the  life  of  God’s  people,  when  fully  lived, 
is  one  of  the  best  testimonies  to  the  reality  of  the  Gospel. 

2.  Ministerial  Caution.  Notwithstanding  the  satisfac¬ 
tion  that  the  Apostle  felt  in  viewing  the  genuineness  of 
these  Christians,  he  could  not  help  giving  them  a  word 
of  warning  against  specious  and  deadly  foes.  His  whole 
soul  pulsed  with  reality,  and  he  shrank  from  anything  like 
“persuasive  speech,”  and  false  arguments  which  might 
easily  lead  astray  the  unwary  and  unstable.  The  day  of 
peril  is  not  over,  and  there  are  many  today  who  are 
easily  captured  by  modern  cults  of  various  kinds.  They 
are  so  persuasive  as  to  endanger  the  spiritual  life  of  people 
by  their  erroneous  reasoning.  And  so  the  need  of  caution 
is  as  great  as  ever. 

3.  Ministerial  Conviction .  The  one  and  sufficient  safe¬ 
guard  against  every  form  of  danger  was  the  Person  and 
Word  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  as  “God  manifest  in  the 
flesh,”  and  as  possessing  in  Himself  everything  that  the 
soul  could  need  for  time  and  eternity.  The  Apostle  was 
certain  that  if  only  there  came  to  be  a  personal  and  ever- 


70 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


increasing  experience  of  Christ  there  would  be  a  sufficient 
protection  against  all  foes.  It  is  exactly  the  same  today. 
Whatever  errors  may  be  prevalent,  however  many  and 
specious  may  be  the  perils,  the  panoply  of  God  is  union 
and  communion  with  Christ,  in  all  the  fulness  of  His 
Divine  Person,  redeeming  work,  risen  life,  and  constant 
fellowship.  Given  this,  all  will  be  well. 


CHAPTER  XII 
Peril  and  Protection,  2: 6- 10a 

TER  the  preceding  verses,  with  their  strong 


emphasis  on  Christ,  it  might  seem  as  though  any- 


***  thing  further  on  this  subject  was  unnecessary,  but 
the  Apostle  feels  that  this  great  theme  must  be  mentioned 
again,  so  intense  is  his  concern  to  see  these  Christians 
steadfast  in  the  true  faith. 


I.  The  Appeal  (vs.  6,  7) 


He  thereupon  speaks  to  them  of  the  necessity  of  con¬ 
tinuing  as  they  had  begun.  They  had  received  Christ 
Jesus  the  Lord  by  faith  (John  1:12),  and  they  were  to 
keep  on  walking  in  Him.  Each  part  of  this  title  is  note¬ 
worthy.  He  is  “the  Christ,”  the  Anointed  One,  the 
Messiah,  the  Divinely  commissioned  Person.  He  is 
“Jesus,”  the  human,  and  historical  personage.  He  is  “the 
Lord,”  with  all  that  this  means  of  supreme  control.  This 
was  the  sum  and  substance  of  their  Christian  life.  They 
had  accepted  our  Saviour  in  this  threefold  way.  He  was 
the  Divine  Messiah,  the  human  Jesus,  and  the  supreme 
Lord.  They  were  to  continue  as  they  had  started,  express¬ 
ing  their  life  in  consistent  conduct  in  union  with  Him. 
This  thought  of  “walking”  is  familiar  in  these  Epistles, 
and  the  idea  is  that  of  complete  and  continuous  manifesta¬ 
tion  in  character  and  conduct  of  everything  involved  in 
the  reception  of  Christ  Jesus  the  Lord. 

Then  follow  three  significant  participles,  all  referring 
to  the  further  progress  of  the  Christian  life.  “Having 
been  rooted.”  This  is  the  first  metaphor,  implying  that 
they  had  been  permanently  fixed  in  the  right  soil.  Then 
the  metaphor  changes,  and  also  the  tense  as  well,  and 

71 


72 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


the  Apostle  speaks  of  their  being  “continually  built  up.” 
The  thought  is  that  of  Christ  as  the  foundation  of  a 
building  on  which  the  Colossian  Christians  were  continu¬ 
ally  being  built.  Then  comes  the  third  thought  of  being 
“continually  made  steadfast.”  This  is  another  present 
tense,  implying  continuous  experience.  Lightfoot  thinks 
that  “faith”  here  is  like  the  cement  of  the  building  which 
helps  to  strengthen  and  solidify  the  structure.  The 
Apostle  very  beautifully  bears  witness  to  the  reality  of 
the  instruction  they  had  received  from  Epaphras,  for  he 
mentions  all  this  as  “according  as  ye  were  taught.”  It 
is  not  enough  for  evangelists  to  win  men  for  Christ ;  they 
must  instruct  them  in  those  principles  of  Christian  living 
which  alone  can  safeguard  the  soul,  and  prevent  it  from 
backsliding. 

With  another  change  of  metaphor  the  Apostle  speaks 
of  these  Christians  “abounding  in  thanksgiving,”  and  the 
thought  of  thankfulness  in  this  connection  is  singularly 
suggestive  and  impressive.  Bengel  makes  one  of  his  char¬ 
acteristic  comments  in  saying  that  “thanksgiving  makes 
lawful  and  makes  glad,  and  shows  the  use  of  things  which 
others  load  with  prohibitions.”  And,  similarly,  Bishop 
Moule  says  that  “there  is  a  great  and  profoundly  reason¬ 
able  power  in  holy  thanksgiving  to  bring  home  to  the 
soul  the  reality  of  the  treasure  for  which  the  thanks 
are  given”  {Colossian  Studies,  p.  130).  And  again, 
after  referring  to  the  classical  legend  of  the  Sirens 
and  Ulysses,  he  remarks:  “No  heart  is  more  vulnerable 
to  doubt  and  to  spiritual  delusion  than  the  unthankful 
heart  which  will  not  walk  in  the  sunshine  of  the  Lord” 
(p.  131).  No  fewer  than  six  times  in  this  brief  Epistle 
is  this  thought  of  thanksgiving  to  be  found  (1:3,  12; 
3:15,  17;  4:2,  and  here). 


Peril  and  Protection.  2:6-10a 


73 


II.  The  Warning  (v.  8) 

Now,  the  caution  already  given  (v.  4)  is  developed  into 
a  reference  to  a  special  peril,  and  he  appeals  to  them 
not  to  allow  themselves  to  be  deceived,  because  it  would 
involve  their  being  ensnared  and  secured  as  a  prey.  The 
exact  expression  of  the  original  shows  that  the  danger 
was  not  imaginary,  but  present  and  pressing.  The  word 
rendered  “maketh  spoil”  is  only  found  here  in  the  New 
Testament,  and  is  rendered  by  Lightfoot,  “carries  you 
off  body  and  soul.”  They  had  been  rescued  from  the 
power  of  darkness  (1:12,  13),  and  they  were  to  watch 
lest  they  were  taken  back  into  a  far  worse  condition. 
The  danger  was  that  of  a  pretended  knowledge,  “a  phi¬ 
losophy  which  is  a  specious  make-believe.”  The  phrase 
is,  perhaps,  to  be  rendered  “vain,  deceitful  philosophy.” 
The  word  “philosophy”  is  found  only  here  in  the  New 
Testament,  and  the  accent  of  scorn  associated  with  it  is 
particularly  noteworthy.  Christianity  is  not  primarily  a 
philosophy,  even  though  Christ  is  “the  wisdom  of  God” 
(1  Cor.  2:6-16).  He  is  wisdom  because  He  is  life, 
and  the  various  problems  associated  with  philosophy,  such 
as  those  of  existence,  nature,  life,  man  and  God,  are 
all  to  be  considered  in  the  light  of  Christ  as  the  special 
life  of  the  soul.  It  is  a  great  mistake  to  think  that  every 
form  of  philosophy  is  capable  of  being  harmonised  with 
Christianity.  The  two  rocks  on  which  most  philosophies 
split  are  those  of  sin  and  redemption,  and  no  system  of 
thought  can  be  regarded  as  worthy  of  the  name  which 
does  not  reckon  with  and  find  a  place  for  human  depravity 
and  divine  salvation.  As  Bishop  Moule  points  out,  the 
trouble  at  Colosse  and  the  trouble  in  modern  days  as 
well  is  that  philosophy  so  often  contradicts  Christ,  and 
is  not  “according  to  Him.”  Men  often  want  “a  Christ 
according  to  the  system  of  thought,  not  a  system  of 


74 


i 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


thought  according  to  the  blessed  Christ”  (p.  142).  And 
yet  this  does  not  mean  any  disparagement  of  the  intellect, 
for  the  word  of  Christ  is  as  clear  as  ever,  “Thou  shalt 
love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  all  thy  ....  mind,”  and 
everyone  knows  the  marvellous  effects  on  the  thinking 
powers  when  a  man  receives  Christ  as  his  life.  “Let 
a  man  of  elevated  and  penetrated  understanding  get  a 
true  view  of  the  Christ  of  God,  as  the  Word  shows 
Him,  and  the  Spirit  glorifies  Him,  and  he  will  have  a 
subject  matter  for  his  whole  mental  power  such  as  he 
never  had  before”  (Moule,  p.  143). 

This  hollow  and  pretended  knowledge  is  further 
described  as  “according  to  the  tradition  of  men,  accord¬ 
ing  to  the  rudiments  of  the  world.”  It  was  evidently 
a  matter  of  silly  trifling,  of  empty  sham,  of  idle  fancy. 
In  another  passage  (Gal.  4:3,  9)  the  word  rendered  “rudi¬ 
ments”  is  applied  to  Jewish  ceremonialism,  while  here  the 
same  idea  seems  to  be  applied  to  paganism.  It  is  natural 
for  modern  applications  to  be  made  in  regard  to  the 
bearing  of  this  on  ceremonialism  in  worship,  and,  as 
Maclaren  points  out,  “enlisting  the  senses  as  the  allies 
of  the  spirit  in  worship  is  risky  work”  ( Colossians , 
p.  192),  especially  because,  while  they  are  thought  to  be 
helpful  to  the  soul  in  approaching  God,  they  are  just 
as  likely  to  prove  harmful,  and  even  disastrous.  “The 
gratification  of  taste  and  the  excitation  of  aesthetic  sensi¬ 
bility,  which  are  the  results  of  such  aids  to  worship,  are 
not  worship,  however  they  may  be  mistaken  as  such.  All 
ceremonial  is  in  danger  of  becoming  opaque  instead  of 
transparent,  as  it  was  meant  to  be”  (p.  193). 

It  is  not  surprising,  therefore,  that  a  great  preacher 
should  dare  to  say  that  “of  the  two  extremes,  a  Quaker 
meeting  is  nearer  the  ideal  of  Christian  worship  than  High 
Mass,”  and  that  “a  Christianity  making  much  of  forms 
and  ceremonies  is  a  definite  retrogression  and  descent.” 


Peril  and  Protection,  2:6-10a 


75 


It  has  truly  been  urged  that  we  must  be  particularly 
careful  lest  we  mistake  the  worship  of  music  for  music 
in  worship.  Worship  is  something  that  goes  far  deeper 
than  the  senses,  though  often  when  our  senses  are  stirred 
we  think  our  worship  is  acceptable.  But  no  worship  is 
worthy  of  the  name  that  does  not  penetrate  to  the  spirit, 
and  does  not  express  itself  in  genuineness  and  reality 
(John  4:23,  24). 

III.  The  Safeguard  (vs.  9,  10a) 

Once  again  the  Apostle  refers  to  Christ  as  the  protec¬ 
tion  against  this  specious  and  deadly  danger.  In  Him 
dwells  permanently  the  entire  fulness  of  Deity  in  a  bodily 
form,  and  in  Him  believers  are  permanently  filled  full. 
In  the  Incarnation  of  Christ  (John  1 : 14)  is  found  the 
complete  revelation  and  possession  of  God,  and  there  is 
no  need  for  believers  to  seek  for  anything  else,  because 
in  Him  they  reach  their  full  life  (John  1:16).  The 
word  “Godhead”  is  found  only  here,  and  is  usually  under¬ 
stood  to  mean  Deity,  or  God’s  essential  nature  as  distinct 
from  Divinity  or  the  qualities  of  the  Godhead  (Rom. 
1 :20).  It  is  a  clear  indication  of  what  the  Apostle  thought 
of  Christ. 

The  theme  of  the  entire  section  is  Christ,  and  even  the 
prepositions  are  noteworthy.  From  verses  6-11  “in” 
occurs  six  times,  while  in  verse  8  there  is  “according  to,” 
and  in  verse  13,  as  we  shall  see,  “with.”  The  various 
elements  and  aspects  of  Christ,  as  here  indicated,  should 
be  thoroughly  and  constantly  kept  in  mind. 

1.  Christ  the  Foundation  (5:7).  This  is  the  basis  of 
all  true  life  (Eph.  2:20;  1  Cor.  3:9-15). 

2.  Christ  the  Sphere.  The  various  references  to  our 
being  “in  Him”  show  that  union  and  communion  with 
Christ  is  the  protection  and  satisfaction  of  the  soul. 

3.  Christ  the  Life.  All  through  this  passage  the  believer 


76 


i 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


is  regarded  as  united  to  a  living  Saviour,  who  is  both 
God  and  man. 

4.  Christ  the  Soil  (v.  7).  The  believer  as  permanently 
rooted  in  Christ  has  struck  his  roots  into  a  soil  that  remains 
fruitful  because  he  is  “planted  by  the  rivers  of  water.” 

5.  Christ  the  Pathway  (v.  6).  We  are  to  walk  in  Him 
who  is  at  once  the  way  and  the  goal.  Thus  Christ  is  to 
be  received,  and  then  the  Christian  is  rooted  in  Him,  built 
up  in  Him,  made  steadfast  in  Him,  walking  in  Him,  and 
all  the  while  abounding  in  thanksgiving.  So  for  doctrine 
and  duty,  character  and  conduct,  life  and  labour,  thought 
and  deed,  word  and  work,  “Christ  is  all,  and  in  all.” 


CHAPTER  XIII 


The  Believer’s  Safety,  2:10b-15 


THIS  section  elaborates  and  amplifies  the  teaching 
of  verse  10a  by  showing  the  practical  details  of 
what  is  meant  by  being  “in  Christ.”  As  He  is  com¬ 
plete,  we  also  are  complete  in  Him. 


I.  Our  Position 

Several  figures  of  speech  are  used  to  indicate  the  spirit¬ 
ual  position  of  every  believer. 

1.  Circumcision  (v.  11).  It  is  natural  to  turn  from  the 
subject  of  the  worship  of  angels  to  this  aspect  of  Paul’s 
teaching.  It  was  entirely  unnecessary  for  Christians  to 
submit  to  the  Jewish  external  rite,  which  after  all  was 
only  a  symbol  of  what  the  followers  of  Christ  possessed  in 
spiritual  reality.  Lightfoot  and  others  point  out  three 
contrasts  between  the  physical  and  spiritual  aspect: 
(a)  The  character  of  the  circumcision  is  inward  and 
spiritual,  not  fleshly,  (b)  It  covers  the  whole  of  sinful 
tendencies  and  is  not  limited  in  extent  to  one  part  alone, 
(c)  Its  author  is  divine,  not  human;  Christ,  not  Moses. 
The  spiritual  meaning  of  circumcision  seems  to  be  purity 
and  consecration  to  God.  We  read  of  the  circum¬ 
cision  of  the  ear  (Jer.  6:10),  of  the  lips  (Exod.  6:12), 
and  of  the  heart  (Lev.  26:41).  It  was  thus  at  once  a 
figure  of  putting  off  the  old  nature  and  of  regarding  our 
life  as  entirely  devoted  to  God.  And  as  believers  of 
Christ  possess  the  spiritual  reality,  there  was  of  course 
no  need  to  submit  to  the  outward  ceremony. 

2.  Burial.  As  in  Romans  6 :4,  the  Apostle  teaches  that 
when  Christ  was  buried,  we  are  regarded  as  having  been 

77 


78 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


buried  with  Him,  thus  once  more  emphasising  the  essential 
oneness  of  the  believer  with  Christ  at  every  stage. 

3.  Resurrection.  Again  the  believer  is  shown  to  be 
identified  with  Christ,  being  raised  with  Him  (Eph.  2:6). 
Our  union  with  Christ  in  His  death,  burial  and  resurrec¬ 
tion  is  one  of  those  spiritual  realities  which  form  the 
basis  of  everything  else  in  the  Christian  life. 

4.  Quickening.  The  resurrection  is  shown  to  be  fol¬ 
lowed  by  the  gift  of  a  new  life.  God  not  only  raised 
us  up  in  and  with  Christ,  but  also  imparted  a  new  life 
in  contrast  with  the  spiritual  death  which  comes  by  reason 
of  our  sin. 

II.  Our  Privileges 

Arising  out  of  this  spiritual  position  come  blessings 
and  privileges  in  daily  living. 

1.  Forgiveness  (v.  13).  Sin  is  here  symbolised  as  a 
debt,  and  there  is  scarcely  anything  more  suggestive  than 
the  thought  that  when  we  have  nothing  to  pay,  God 
freely  and  fully  remits  the  obligation  (Luke  7:42). 

2.  Deliverance  (v.  14).  This  is  a  further  statement  of 
what  is  involved  in  pardon.  The  “bond”  is  used  to  indi¬ 
cate  our  obligation  to  perform  legal  obedience,  but  owing 
to  our  inability  to  meet  the  debt,  Christ  has  cancelled  and 
erased  it,  and  thus  removed  all  that  faced  us,  because  it 
was  quite  impossible  for  us  to  satisfy  God’s  requirements 
by  our  own  efforts.  God’s  Law,  for  which  we  are  respon¬ 
sible,  is  “the  soul  that  sinneth,  it  shall  die,”  and  when  it 
is  said  that  the  bond  is  “against  us”  or  opposed  to  us, 
it  suggests  the  validity  of  the  Law  in  relation  to  us.  We 
are  debtors  to  it,  and  yet  we  are  absolutely  incapable  of 
meeting  its  demands.  But  Christ  has  fulfilled  the  Law 
for  us  and  has  thereby  cancelled  it,  and  the  Apostle  gives 
a  vivid  picture  of  Christ  nailing  the  cancelled  document 
to  His  cross  in  token  of  His  complete  victory.  Thus  the 


The  Believer's  Safety ,  2:1  Ob-1 5 


79 


Law  is  now  powerless  to  insist  upon  our  obedience  or 
to  inflict  any  punishment,  because  the  death  of  Christ  has 
entirely  destroyed  it,  so  far  as  obligation  to  obey  it  for 
salvation  is  concerned. 

3.  Victory  (v.  15).  Not  only  was  the  writing  erased, 
but  the  bond  itself  was  torn  up  and  cast  aside,  and  this 
was  due  to  the  fact  that  Christ  won  a  complete  victory 
over  all  the  hostile  powers  which  were  endeavoring  to 
keep  back  the  sinner  and  prevent  him  from  accepting 
Christ.  The  thought  of  these  words  seems  on  the  whole 
to  be  well  stated  by  the  translation  of  the  A.  V.,  which 
is  followed  by  the  American  Version.  It  tells  of  Christ 
having  triumphed  completely  over  the  evil  powers,  and 
of  His  having  taken  them  captive  (2  Cor.  2:14;  Eph. 
6:12).  The  main  truth  seems  to  be  the  completeness  of 
Christ’s  victory  over  evil.  Bishop  Moule  very  appropri¬ 
ately  introduces  at  this  point  these  verses  of  the  hymn : 

He  gave  me  back  the  bond ; 

It  was  a  heavy  debt ; 

And  as  He  gave,  He  smil’d,  and  said, 

“Thou  wilt  not  Me  forget.” 

He  gave  me  back  the  bond; 

The  seal  was  torn  away; 

And  as  He  gave,  He  smil’d,  and  said, 

“Think  thou  of  Me  alway.” 

***** 

It  is  a  bond  no  more, 

But  it  shall  ever  tell 
All  that  I  ow’d  was  fully  paid 
By  my  Emmanuel. 

III.  Our  Power 

It  necessarily  follows  that  those  who  occupy  this  spirit¬ 
ual  position  and  enjoy  these  spiritual  privileges  possess 


80 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


spiritual  power  for  practical  life.  The  following  aspects 
are  suggested: 

1.  Union  (vs.  11,  12).  The  emphasis  on  the  word  “in” 
very  plainly  shows  that  the  source  of  all  spiritual  power 
lies  in  the  union  of  the  soul  with  Christ.  Nothing  can 
take  the  place  of  this,  while  from  it  everything  else 
follows. 

2.  Fellowship  (v.  13).  This  is  indicated  by  the  word 
“with,”  for  we  are  not  only  buried  and  raised  in  Christ, 
but  “with”  Him,  thereby  suggesting  a  spiritual  fellowship 
that  arises  out  of  union. 

3.  Faith  (v.  12).  All  this  is  associated  with  a  definite 
confidence  in  God  as  the  Object  of  our  trust.  It  is  impor¬ 
tant  to  keep  in  mind  that  the  exercise  of  faith  in  God  is 
the  Source  of  all  spiritual  strength  and  blessing.  Scrip¬ 
ture  is  very  emphatic  in  regard  to  the  way  faith  links 
us  to  God  as  the  means  of  obtaining  grace  and  power. 

As  we  review  this  passage,  it  is  important  to  notice 
two  thoughts: 

1.  Spiritual  Completeness.  This  is  especially  connected 
with  the  Cross.  Through  the  death  of  Christ,  we  obtain 
forgiveness  of  sins,  the  abrogation  of  Law,  and  victory 
over  the  power  of  sin.  There  are  few  things  more  impres¬ 
sive  in  the  New  Testament  than  the  wonderful  variety  of 
truth  connected  with  the  death  of  Christ.  It  is  the  ground 
of  our  pardon,  the  basis  of  our  peace,  the  secret  of  our 
purity,  and  the  source  of  our  power.  No  wonder  that 
the  Apostle  cried,  “God  forbid  that  I  should  glory  save 
in  the  cross  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.” 

2.  Comfort.  The  comfort  of  the  passage  is  equally 
inspiring.  We  can  look  backward,  and  outward,  and 
onward,  and  know  that  all  is  well.  The  law  which  was 
hostile  to  us  is  entirely  destroyed.  The  power  of  sin, 
which  held  us  in  bondage,  is  completely  broken.  The  rites 
and  ceremonies  of  religion,  so  far  as  they  are  concerned 


The  Believer's  Safety,  2 :10b- 15 


81 


with  our  justification,  are  done  away  in  Christ,  and  to 
return  to  them,  would  mean  that  Christ  is  not  enough. 
As  a  writer  has  said,  “Dead  men  have  nothing  to  do  with 
ordinances.”  They  were  useless  to  us  when  we  were  dead 
in  sin,  and  we  are  useless  to  them  now,  because  we  are 
dead  with  Christ.  Thus  we  rejoice  as  we  contemplate 
past,  present,  and  future,  and  thankfully  recognize  that 
“Christ  is  All.” 


6 


CHAPTER  XIV 
The  Twofold  Appeal,  2:16-19 


HERE  comes  the  application  of  verses  8-15,  first 
in  regard  to  practical  matters  (vs.  16,  17),  and 
then  in  reference  to  doctrinal  questions  (vs. 
18,  19).  Because  of  what  Christ  has  done  for  us,  we 
are  to  beware  of  every  form  of  error. 


I.  The  First  Appeal  (vs.  16,  17) 

The  serious  danger  is  that  of  the  loss  of  Christian 
liberty,  and  this  is  the  point  of  “therefore/’  Because 
Christ  has  cancelled  the  bond  of  the  law  and  has  forever 
destroyed  it,  and  since  He  has  gained  complete  victory 
over  all  powers  of  evil,  Christians  are  to  beware  of  becom¬ 
ing  entangled  again  in  anything  that  would  lead  them  from 
Christ  and  from  the  fulness  of  their  privileges  in  Him. 
The  argument  is  much  the  same  as  that  in  Galatians  5  :1. 
Because  believers  are  free  they  are  not  to  yield  them¬ 
selves  again  to  subjection  to  that  from  which  they  have 
been  so  completely  delivered.  It  is  generally  thought  that 
the  dangers  against  which  the  Apostle  warns  the  Colos- 
sians  are  both  Jewish  and  Oriental,  the  former  referring 
to  the  law  and  the  latter  to  the  question  of  angelic  media¬ 
tion.  It  is  the  first  of  these  which  he  specially  emphasises 
in  these  two  verses.  He  urges  them  not  merely  against 
the  observance  of  these  things,  but  against  those  who 
would  call  them  to  account  for  not  observing  them,  and 
he  specifies  five  matters.  Eating  and  drinking  are  of 
course  questions  of  unimportance  because  God’s  kingdom 
is  not  a  matter  of  food  and  drink  (Rom.  14:17),  but  of 
things  spiritual.  The  “feast”  is  a  reference  to  the  annual 
festivals  of  the  Jews,  like  the  Passover,  and  the  “new 

82 


The  Twofold  Appeal,  2:16-19 


83 


moon”  is  an  allusion  to  the  sacrifice  on  the  first  day  of 
every  month  (Num.  28:11).  The  mention  of  the  Sabbath 
Day  is  clearly  that  of  the  Jewish  Sabbath  as  one  of  those 
legal  institutions  from  which  we  are  set  free  in  Christ. 
No  one  must  for  an  instant  suppose  that  the  observance 
of  the  Sabbath  Day  can  in  any  way  procure  or  help  to 
procure  salvation.  But  the  Sabbath  is  something  infinitely 
greater  than  a  merely  Jewish  institution,  for  it  was  made 
“for  man”  and  dates  from  the  creation.  There  is  scarcely 
anything  more  significant  than  the  fact  that  just  as  the 
Jewish  institution  was  being  brought  to  an  end  Christ 
called  himself  “the  Lord  of  the  Sabbath.”  Thus  Christ’s 
cancelling  of  the  bond  set  aside  the  Sabbath  as  Jewish, 
but  at  the  same  time  because  we  are  “under  law  to  Christ,” 
we  have  the  Sabbath,  or  Lord’s  Day,  as  a  divine  institu¬ 
tion  dating  from  the  beginning  and  intended  for  permanent 
observance.  Christian  men  will  therefore  rejoice  in  their 
liberty  from  everything  purely  Jewish  and  will  at  the 
same  time  observe  with  devotion  the  day  of  rest  which 
God  has  appointed  for  spirit,  soul,  and  body.  While 
Christ  resolutely  set  aside  the  deplorable  bondage  which 
Jewish  teaching  had  associated  with  the  Sabbath,  He 
taught  that  by  the  Sabbath  being  “made  for  man,”  it  was 
intended  to  prevent  constant  absorption  in  worldly  affairs 
and  to  enable  body,  mind,  and  soul  to  have  that  cessation 
from  work  which  would  enable  man  to  do  what  God 
intended  him  to  do.  As  a  thoughtful  writer  has  pointed 
out,  “at  the  creation  of  the  human  race  God  instituted 
the  weekly  day  of  worship  and  rest;  and  he  did  so  to 
the  universal  good  of  man.”  This  is  our  supreme  and 
sufficient  authority  for  the  weekly  cessation  from  toil,  and 
the  opportunity  thus  given  for  worship  and  intellectual 
rest.  When  this  is  properly  understood  it  will  enable  men 
to  realise  the  will  of  God,  and  although  there  are  those 
who  with  what  may  perhaps  be  called  hyperspirituality 


84 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


speak  of  every  day  being  a  sabbath,  facts  prove  beyond 
question  that  the  observance  of  the  Lord’s  Day  is  one  of 
the  most  essential  features  of  all  true  spiritual  life,  and 
that  spirituality  is  not  furthered  by  thinking  of  every  day 
as  exactly  alike. 

The  reason  why  all  these  things  are  not  to  be  allowed 
to  encroach  upon  Christian  liberty  is  that  they  are  a  mere 
shadow  of  spiritual  realities  (v.  17).  Like  the  law  in 
general,  which  was  a  shadow  of  the  good  things  to  come 
(Heb.  10:1),  these  things  typified  what  was  found  and 
fulfilled  in  Christ.  Thus  eating  and  drinking  are  symbols 
of  spiritual  food  (John  6:51-56).  The  festivals  are  a 
type  of  that  continuous  festival  which  is  ours  in  Christ 
(1  Cor.  5:8,  Greek).  The  Jewish  feast  days  were,  like 
the  Passover,  anticipatory  of  Christ  (1  Cor.  5:7),  while 
the  Jewish  Sabbath  was  a  suggestion  of  the  Sabbath  of 
the  soul,  which  is  the  believer’s  privilege  today,  and  of  the 
eternal  rest  hereafter  for  the  people  of  God  (Heb.  4:9). 

II.  The  Second  Appeal  (vs.  18,  19) 

The  next  call  is  even  more  imperative.  The  word 
used  is  very  rare  and  seems  to  refer  to  the  decision  of 
an  umpire.  Lightfoot,  together  with  the  English  and 
the  American  Revised  Version,  render  “rob  you  of  your 
prize,”  explaining  that  the  false  teachers  at  Colosse  are 
considered  to  be  persons  frustrating  those  who  would 
otherwise  have  won  the  prize.  Other  writers  translate  the 
words  “let  no  one  give  judgment  against  you,”  and  this 
certainly  is  the  force  of  the  original  word,  which  occurs 
only  here.  In  either  case  it  means  that  no  one  is  to  be 
defrauded  of  his  proper  position  by  being  compelled  to 
submit  to  those  things,  because  submission  would  involve 
the  loss  of  Christian  liberty.  Any  one  who  attempted 
to  do  this  would  be  taking  pleasure  in  a  wrong  kind  of 
humility.  But  what  is  the  meaning  of  humility  here,  and 


The  Twofold  Appeal ,  2:16-19 


85 


to  whom  is  the  reference?  Most  writers  interpret  the 
words  of  a  humility  which  led  men  to  worship  angels 
thinking  God  was  unapproachable  except  through  the 
mediation  of  celestial  beings.  If  this  is  the  meaning,  then 
of  course  the  humility  is  false,  the  word  being  used 
ironically,  because  the  Christian  knows  well  that  he  has 
not  the  slightest  need  to  approach  God  through  any  such 
channels,  but  can  enter  the  divine  presence  direct.  But  it 
is  somewhat  difficult  to  realise  that  these  Colossian  saints 
needed  a  warning  against  angel-worship,  unless  of  course 
they  were  so  indoctrinated  in  the  Oriental  conception 
of  the  necessity  of  stages  between  themselves  and  God. 
One  writer  maintains  that  the  reference  is  to  the  religious 
humility  entertained  by  angels,  to  the  humble  position 
which  they  take,  veiling  their  faces  before  God  because 
they  do  not  possess  the  same  boldness  of  access  as  Chris¬ 
tians  do  (Rom.  5:2).  This  would  mean  that  as  Chris¬ 
tians  stand  before  God  in  Christ  no  one  is  to  allow  them 
to  be  robbed  of  this  standing  and  make  them  willing  to 
accept  a  lower  position  through  a  false  humility.  Either 
of  these  views  makes  good  sense,  though  the  former  is 
far  more  universally  endorsed,  and  the  latter  is  somewhat 
less  easy  to  follow.  Another  difficulty  in  this  passage 
is  in  regard  to  the  reading.  The  Revised  Version  reads, 
“dwelling  in  the  things  which  he  hath  seen/’  while  the 
Authorised  Version  inserts  the  word  “not,”  “which  he 
hath  not  seen.”  The  textual  authorities  seem  to  be  equally 
divided,  though  it  is  thought  that  the  balance  favors  the 
omission  of  the  negative  as  giving  the  harder  reading, 
which  according  to  the  usual  principle  is  more  likely  to 
have  been  the  original.  If  we  omit  the  negative  it  means 
that  such  a  person  as  is  here  mentioned  was  only  con¬ 
cerned  with  what  his  fleshly  mind  could  see,  the  only 
standing  he  could  comprehend.  He  could  not  stand  or 
walk  by  faith.  Or  it  may  be  that  it  refers  to  him  as 


86 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


“going  into  subtle  explanations  regarding  his  visions.” 
These  false  teachers  made  pretensions  to  know  super¬ 
natural  things  by  means  of  visions,  yet  this  pretension  to 
a  knowledge  of  the  invisible  world  did  not  rest  on  faith 
but  was  the  result  of  vanity  of  the  flesh.  The  word 
rendered  “intruding”  in  the  A.  V.  is  translated  “dwelling” 
in  the  R.  V.  (margin,  “taking  his  stand  on”).  Sir  William 
Ramsay  has  shown  that  it  was  a  technical  term  in  the 
mystery-religions  of  St.  Paul’s  day,  and  probably  means 
“putting  foot  on  the  threshold”  or  entering  on  the  new 
life  of  the  initiated.  This  practically  agrees  with  the  R.  V. 
Bishop  Moule  favors  the  retention  of  the  word  “not,” 
and  of  course  in  this  case  the  meaning  will  be  that  the  man 
who  talks  about  the  worship  of  angels  is  dealing  with 
things  about  which  he  knows  nothing.  In  either  case  the 
thought  is  that  these  Colossian  saints  were  not  to  be 
defrauded  of  their  true  standing  in  Christ. 

A  reason  is  given  for  this  appeal.  It  is  because 
such  an  attitude  involves  the  Christian  in  the  error  of 
“not  holding  fast  the  Head”  (v.  10).  It  would  mean 
disloyalty  to  Christ,  because  all  the  false  teaching  was  of 
the  flesh  and  was  not  derived  from  Him.  On  the  other 
hand,  those  who  were  right  with  God  in  Christ  would 
find  that  every  part  of  the  body  was  receiving  grace 
direct  from  God  and  was  growing  continually  in  and 
through  Him  Who  is  the  Head.  The  erroneous  teaching 
proved  that  the  holder  was  not  a  member  of  that  body 
of  which  Christ  is  the  Head,  because  that  body  is  in  vital 
and  direct  connection  with  Christ,  and  is  continually  grow¬ 
ing  by  the  intercommunion  between  every  part  of  it. 
Indeed  the  passage  speaks  in  very  wonderful  language  of 
“the  increase  of  God,”  as  though  God  grew  when  His  peo¬ 
ple  grew  through  union  with  Christ.  Lightfoot  defines  this 
phrase  as  “that  which  partakes  of  God,  which  belongs 
to  God,  which  has  its  abode  in  God.  Thus  the  finite  is 


The  Twofold  Appeal,  2:16-19 


87 


truly  united  with  the  Infinite;  the  end  which  the  false 
teachers  strove  in  vain  to  compass  is  attained.”  Bishop 
Moule  interprets  it  to  mean  developing  a  holiness  and 
power  of  which  God  is  the  Source  and  Secret  and  Environ¬ 
ment  ;  “nothing  between.”  Maclaren  says  the  increase  will 
come  from  God,  and  be  pleasing  to  Him  because  it  will 
be  the  growth  of  His  own  life  in  the  body,  since  “there 
is  an  increase  not  of  God.” 

This  passage  suggests  by  its  reference  to  Christ  the 
essential  position  and  privileges  of  the  believer,  (a)  In 
verses  9  and  10  Christ  is  the  Head,  and  the  believer  has 
his  position  in  Him.  (b)  Here  in  verse  19  Christ  is  also 
shown  to  be  the  Head,  but  the  thought  is  of  progress. 
We  are  complete  in  Him  in  regard  to  our  place,  and  we 
are  also  nourished  by  and  built  up  in  Him  because  He 
is  our  Head.  Thus  every  part  of  the  believer’s  life  is 
fully  met  by  the  ample  provision,  and  because  of  this 
genuine,  blessed,  and  satisfying  substance  he  is  urged  to 
avoid  anything  that  would  keep  him  living  in  the  shadows. 
We  must  not  allow  ourselves  to  be  defrauded  of  any 
blessing  that  is  ours  in  union  and  communion  with  our 
Divine  Lord  and  Head. 


CHAPTER  XV 
Facts  and  Factors,  2:20-23 

FROM  the  doctrinal,  the  Apostle  now  turns  to  the 
practical,  from  theology  to  morality,  and  he  pro¬ 
ceeds  to  show  the  utter  impossibility  of  any  Chris¬ 
tian  doing  that  against  which  he  had  been  warning  and 
speaking  so  strongly.  He  does  this  on  two  grounds. 
They  had  “died  with  Christ”  (2 :20),  and  had  been  “raised 
with  Christ”  (3:1).  On  the  proper  meaning  of  these 
two  spiritual  facts,  their  entire  practical  life  turned. 

I.  The  Safe  Position  (v.  20) 

The  Christian  is  here  described  as  having  “died  with 
Christ  from  the  rudiments  of  the  world.”  The  tense 
of  the  word  “died”  implies  a  definite  time  in  the  past. 
This,  from  the  standpoint  of  God,  was  when  Christ  Him¬ 
self  died  on  the  cross,  but  so  far  as  the  believer’s  own 
life  was  involved,  it  took  place  the  moment  he  received 
Christ,  as  his  personal  Saviour.  Death  always  means 
separation,  and  this  is  the  reason  why  it  is  described 
as  “from  the  rudiments  of  the  world.”  It  is  important 
that  the  believer  should  recognise  this  death  with  Christ 
as  an  absolute  fact,  and  not  as  something  to  which  he  is 
to  submit  for  the  purpose  of  obtaining  an  experience  of 
it.  It  is  an  absolute,  an  accomplished  fact,  whether  he 
experiences  it  or  not.  There  are  several  statements  in 
the  New  Testament  to  prove  that  when  Christ  died  the 
believer  died  also  (Rom.  6:8,  11;  Col.  2:11,  12). 

The  words  “with  Christ”  show  that  Christ  Himself  is 
also  regarded  as  having  died  “from  the  rudiments  of  the 
world.”  This  seems  to  mean,  first  of  all,  that  as  He 
was  “made  under  the  law”  He  was  of  course  under  obliga- 

88 


Facts  and  Factors ,  2:20-23 


89 


tion  to  fulfil  the  law  during  His  earthly  life,  but  that 
when  He  died  this  obligation  necessarily  came  to  an  end. 
Furthermore,  His  death  was  the  fulfilment  of  these 
requirements  in  the  sense  that  He  was  the  reality  to 
which  they  all  pointed,  so  that  His  death  was  their  aboli¬ 
tion.  It  is  for  this  reason  that  the  Apostle  is  so  strong 
in  insisting  upon  the  believer  dying  with  Christ,  for  if 
Christ  died  from  these  rudiments,  they  can  no  longer  be 
of  any  authority  over  the  believer.  Nothing  is  to  inter¬ 
fere  with  the  perfect  liberty  of  the  Christian  in  his  union 
with  Christ,  for  in  Christ  he  died  to  sin  (Rom.  6:2),  to 
self  (2  Cor.  5:15),  and  to  the  law  (Gal.  2:19). 

If  it  should  be  said,  as  it  has  more  than  once  been 
questioned,  that  this  reference  to  ordinances  seems  to 
reflect  on  baptism  and  the  Lord’s  Supper,  the  obvious 
reply  is  that  these  do  not  come  under  the  same  rule, 
because  they  are  in  no  sense  “rudiments  of  the  world” 
or  intended  for  the  purpose  of  providing  and  guaranteeing 
salvation.  They  are  Christian  ordinances  for  use  by 
believers  as  solemn  pledges  and  assurances  of  grace,  and 
provide  just  that  touch  with  the  material  world  which  is 
a  help,  not  a  hindrance  to  spiritual  life.  The  very  sim¬ 
plicity  of  the  ordinances,  the  only  two  in  the  Christian 
Church,  clearly  proves  the  impossibility  of  associating 
them  with  the  Apostle’s  warning,  unless  of  course  they 
are  used  in  the  wrong  sense  to  imply  a  guarantee  of 
salvation.  It  may  also  be  pointed  out  that  pure  and  true 
Christianity  has  always  been  exceedingly  simple,  and  free 
from  elaborate  ceremonial,  because  it  is  a  universal  expe¬ 
rience  that  ceremonial  is  apt  to  lead  the  soul  from  Christ 
and  involve  it  in  a  complexity  of  legalism. 

II.  The  Solemn  Protest  (vs.  20,  22) 

Based  on  this  fact  of  the  Christian  having  died  with 
Christ,  the  question  is  naturally  and  forcibly  put,  “Why 


90 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


do  ye  submit  to  the  yoke  of  ordinances?”  Christ  had  set 
them  free  from  these  things  and  they  ought  not  to  be 
capable  of  desiring  to  be  again  in  slavery.  The  three  pro¬ 
hibitions  (v.  21)  are  apparently  some  of  the  requirements 
insisted  on  by  the  false  teachers.  As  Maclaren  says :  “These 
three  prohibitions  are  not  Paul’s  but  are  quoted  by  him  as 
the  kind  of  rules  and  regulations  which  he  is  protesting 
against.”  Thus  the  Apostle  puts  them  on  their  guard 
against  these  false  teachers  and  shows  that  in  the  natural 
processes  of  eating  and  drinking  all  such  things  will 
perish  by  being  used  up.  This  constitutes  their  unimport¬ 
ance  in  regard  to  the  spiritual  life,  and  indeed  they  are 
characterised  by  being  merely  human  and  temporary,  St. 
Paul  quoting  to  this  effect  from  Isaiah  29:13.  It  is 
significant  that  he  shows  how  the  teachings  of  men  were 
being  observed,  even  while  God  was  being  disobeyed. 
Thus  these  observances  against  which  he  was  writing 
were  merely  human  inventions,  and,  as  a  writer  well 
puts  it,  the  special  force  of  this  appeal  is:  “Ye  who  are 
in  union  with  Christ,  how  can  ye  receive  mere  human 
precepts  which  contradict  His  will?” 

III.  The  Spiritual  Powerlessness  (v.  23) 

Furthermore,  in  submitting  to  these  false  methods  of 
living,  the  Christian  was  really  doing  what  was  absolutely 
useless  for  spiritual  power  and  blessing.  These  ordinances 
had  nothing  but  a  mere  appearance  of  wisdom  and  were 
of  no  real  value  in  remedying  the  indulgences  of  the  flesh 
or  destroying  sin  in  the  life.  They  constituted  a  religious 
service  which  was  purely  gratuitous  on  the  part  of  the 
worshipper  and  one  that  was  not  sought  or  recognised  as 
acceptable  to  God  (v.  18).  They  were  of  the  nature  of 
will-worship,  and  while  they  made  a  pretense  of  great 
godliness  and  were  garbed  in  the  robe  of  humility,  they 
were  essentially  marks  of  pride  and  really  set  aside  the 


Facts  and  Factors ,  2:20-23 


91 


finished  work  of  Christ  on  our  behalf.  It  is  important 
to  remember  that  severity  of  treatment  meted  out  to  the 
body  has  no  power  to  remove  and  destroy  the  appetite 
or  passions  of  the  soul.  Asceticism  may  try  to  prevent 
indulgence  in  sin  but  it  is  really  incapable  of  overcoming 
evil.  Thus  it  is  futile  as  a  remedy  for  any  form  of 
wrong,  and  the  only  way  of  dealing  aright  with  the  body 
is  to  regard  it  as  part  of  the  personality  of  the  believer 
in  union  with  Christ,  and  therefore  by  reason  of  that 
union,  as  dead  to  sin  and  alive  to  God. 

Looking  back  over  the  entire  passage  from  verse  8,  it  is 
seen  that  there  is  a  threefold  peril.  They  are  warned 
against  being  deceived  (v.  8),  against  being  judged 
(v.  16),  and  against  being  defrauded  (v.  18).  There  is 
still  the  same  danger  today.  False  religions,  false  philoso¬ 
phies,  and  false  systems  continue  to  do  their  utmost  to 
bring  the  believer  into  bondage,  and  on  this  account  we 
are  to  heed  the  solemn  words  found  here. 

But  the  protection  is  made  as  clear  as  the  peril,  and 
this  is  found  all  through  the  section,  in  union  with  Christ, 
our  Head.  Lightfoot  points  out  that  the  discoveries  of 
modern  physiology  have  given  the  Apostle’s  language  great 
distinctness  and  force,  which  even  his  own  contemporaries 
could  not  have  understood,  for  “at  every  turn  we  meet 
with  some  fresh  illustration  which  kindles  it  with  a  flood 
of  light.”  Christ  as  our  Head  contains  wisdom  for  us. 
Christ  as  our  Head  conveys  grace  and  power  to  us.  Christ 
as  our  Head  controls  our  lives  and  enables  us  to  do  His 
will.  This  is  the  force  of  the  prayer  in  chapter  1,  where 
wisdom,  strength  and  the  knowledge  of  God’s  will  are  all 
included.  The  more  we  can  realise  our  assured  union  with 
Christ,  and  the  more  we  yield  ourselves  by  faith  and 
surrender  to  the  Lordship  of  Christ  as  our  Head,  the 
more  effective  will  be  our  practical  life,  both  in  opposition 
to  what  is  evil  and  in  furtherance  of  what  is  good. 


CHAPTER  XVI 
Resurrection  Power,  3:1-4 

HERE  is  given  the  second  reason  for  not  following 
the  counsels  of  the  false  teachers.  As  the  Chris¬ 
tians  were  not  to  do  this  because  they  had  died 
with  Christ  (2:20),  so  now  they  are  led  on  to  see  that 
they  are  risen  with  Christ,  and  this  in  particular  is  a 
reason  for  not  following  any  false  way.  To  be  dead 
with  Christ  carries  with  it  resurrection,  and  now  the 
Apostle  will  show  that  this  is  the  genuine  and  adequate 
power  against  any  indulgence  of  the  flesh.  Holy  living 
is  possible,  but  it  must  be  realised  in  the  right  way,  not 
in  the  wrong.  We  shall  also  see  how  all  true  life  neces* 
sarily  springs  from  true  doctrine. 

I.  The  Reminder  (v.  1) 

The  Apostle  first  calls  their  attention  to  the  fact  they 
were  “raised  together  with  Christ,”  the  word  “if”  imply¬ 
ing  “since.”  He  assumes  it  as  a  fact  and  does  not  suggest 
any  doubt.  The  resurrection  is  variously  presented  in 
the  New  Testament,  and  it  is  at  once  a  proof,  a  pattern, 
a  power,  a  prophecy,  and  a  pledge.  It  is  the  proof  of 
our  acceptance  of  Christ’s  death  and  of  our  acceptance 
with  Him  (Rom.  4:25),  it  is  to  be  the  pattern  of  our 
holy  life  (Rom.  6:4),  it  is  also  the  power  for  Christian 
character  and  service  (Eph.  1 :18-20) ;  it  contains  the 
promise  of  our  own  resurrection  (1  Thess.  4:14),  and 
it  is  the  pledge  of  our  life  hereafter  (John  14:19). 

In  this  passage  our  resurrection  is  associated  with  Christ 
(2 :12)  because  we  are  united  to  Him  in  such  a  way  that 
whatever  He  did,  we  are  regarded  by  God  as  having  done 
also  (Rom.  6:8). 


92 


Resurrection  Power,  3:1-4 


93 


II.  The  Realisation  (vs.  1,  2) 

On  account  of  this  union  with  a  living  Christ,  we  are 
to  do  two  things.  First,  we  are  to  “seek  those  things  that 
are  above,”  and  then  we  are  to  do  still  more,  “set  our 
mind  on  the  things  that  are  above.”  The  word  “mind” 
includes  the  entire  personality  and  refers  to  the  whole 
bent  of  our  inner  nature.  We  are  to  see  that  the  tendency 
of  our  life  is  towards  heavenly,  not  earthly  things.  The 
original  word  is  very  striking,  implying  concentration  of 
every  power  on  things  heavenly  (Phil.  2:2,  5;  3:19,  20; 
see  also  Matt.  6 :33  and  Gal.  5  :26).  This  attitude  naturally 
and  necessarily  follows  from  our  union  with  Christ. 

III.  The  Reason  (v.  3) 

Christ  is  now  in  heaven,  seated  on  the  right  hand  of 
God,  and  when  He  died  we  were  united  to  Him  in  His 
death,  and,  as  a  consequence,  in  His  resurrection.  This 
means  that  as  He  is  above,  our  life  united  to  Him  is  “hid 
with  Christ  in  God.”  The  word  “hid”  is  very  suggestive 
because  it  means  “has  been  permanently  hidden,”  and  the 
thought  seems  to  include  the  two  ideas  of  secrecy  and 
safety.  Our  life  is  “hid”  and  therefore  unseen  by  man. 
It  is  also  “hid”  and  therefore  incapable  of  being  touched 
or  hurt  by  any  evil  power.  This  is  the  glory  of  the  Chris¬ 
tian  life,  and  it  is  not  surprising  that  men  from  time  to 
time  have  rejoiced  in  the  consciousness  of  perfect  safety 
in  this  union  with  Christ  (see  Bishop  Moule,  Colossian 
Studies,  page  190). 

IV.  The  Revelation  (v.  4) 

But  this  is  not  everything,  for  although  the  believer’s 
life  is  now  hidden,  one  day  Christ  will  be  made  manifest 
and  then  the  Christian  also  will  be  revealed  with  Him. 
Christ  is  described  as  “our  life”  and  thus  we  are  identified 


94 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


with  Him  (1  John  5:12).  Lightfoot  has  a  very  helpful 
comment  on  this  thought  of  the  believer’s  manifestation; 
“The  veil  which  now  shrouds  your  higher  life  from  others, 
and  even  partly  from  yourselves,  will  then  be  withdrawn. 
The  world,  which  persecutes,  despises,  ignores  now,  will 
then  be  blinded  with  the  dazzling  glory  of  the  revelation.” 
This  is  the  inspiration  of  the  Christian  soul  as  he  looks 
forward  to  that  blessed  hope  when  Christ  shall  appear  and 
all  His  people  appear  with  Him  in  glory  (John  17:22; 
Rom.  8:19;  Rev.  19:11-14). 

This  familiar  and  yet  perennially  wonderful  passage  is 
full  of  blessed  teaching  concerning  Christ  and  the  believer. 
(1)  Christ  is  mentioned  no  fewer  than  four  times,  includ¬ 
ing  His  resurrection,  His  session  above,  His  union  with 
God,  and  His  coming  again.  (2)  The  believer  is  also 
mentioned  in  connection  with  Christ  in  several  ways.  First 
comes  our  union  with  Christ,  then  follows  our  life  hidden 
in  Him,  and  lastly,  the  assurance  is  given  of  future  mani¬ 
festation.  All  this  suggests  and  emphasises  the  one 
supreme  lesson  of  the  New  Testament,  that  occupation 
with  Christ  is  the  secret  of  everything  in  the  Christian 
life.  The  old  word  Sursum  Corda,  “lift  up  your  hearts,” 
is  the  only  right  attitude  for  salvation,  sanctification,  and 
satisfaction.  Be  it  ours  to  respond  with  thankfulness, 
adoration  and  praise,  “We  lift  them  up  unto  the  Lord.” 


CHAPTER  XVII 
Heaven  and  Earth,  3:5-11 

SPURGEON  is  recorded  to  have  said  in  his  charac¬ 
teristically  quaint  way,  that  this  chapter  begins  in 
heaven  and  ends  in  the  kitchen.  At  this  point 
comes  an  exhortation  to  practical  living,  based  on  the 
great  truths  of  vs.  1-3. 

I.  The  Appeal  (v.  4) 

Because  their  life  is  hid  with  Christ,  they  are  exhorted 
to  “put  to  death”  their  earthly  members.  The  wrong  way 
of  living  has  already  been  shown  (2:23),  but  since  these 
believers  had  died  with  Christ  (2:20)  it  was  possible  for 
them  to  carry  out  in  their  life  the  spiritual  results,  for 
union  with  Christ  is  at  once  our  power  and  our  pattern. 
The  word  rendered  “put  to  death”  or  “mortify”  implies 
a  definite  act,  and  is  interpreted  by  Bishop  Moule  as  “give 
to  death.”  This  means  that  they  were  to  realise  in  practical 
life  what  is  meant  by  “reckoning  themselves  dead  to  sin 
in  Christ”  (Rom.  6:11).  We  are  to  accept  this  as  a  fact 
and  then  live  in  the  power  of  it.  When  the  soul  is  con¬ 
scious  that  Christ  not  only  died  for  its  salvation,  but  that 
it  is  united  with  Him  in  His  death,  there  comes  a  power 
which  enables  it  to  live  to  God’s  praise  and  glory. 

II.  The  Description  (v.  5) 

The  sins  mentioned  here  include  moral  actions  and  moral 
desires,  and  all  of  them  are  of  course  characteristic  of 
“our  members  which  are  upon  the  earth.”  It  is  very 
impressive  that  “covetousness”  is  included  in  this  state¬ 
ment,  and  is  further  described  as  idolatry.  It  shows  that 
every  evil  desire,  whatever  form  it  may  take,  is  really 

95 


96 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


equivalent  to  removing  God  from  His  place  in  our  life 
as  the  Object  of  our  worship  and  devotion.  “Ye  cannot 
serve  God  and  mammon.” 

III.  The  Outcome  (v.  6) 

On  account  of  these  things,  God’s  wrath  is  certain  to 
come,  both  now  and  hereafter.  The  phrase  “wrath  of  God” 
should  be  carefully  noted  here  and  elsewhere  (Rom.  1 :18; 
Eph.  5:6),  for  it  means  the  divine  judicial  attitude  to 
everything  that  is  sinful.  The  solemn  word  “cometh” 
indicates  the  absolute  certainty  that  this  result  will  accrue. 

IV.  The  Reminder  (v.  7) 

They  are  then  told  that  these  things  formed  part  and 
parcel  of  their  life  in  old  days.  The  word  “walk”  always 
means  the  outward  expression  of  life,  the  conduct  which 
comes  from  the  possession  of  life.  It  is  frequently  found 
in  the  Bible  as  indicative  of  the  true  outward  behaviour  of 
the  believer  (Gen.  17:1;  Eph.  2 :2 ;  4 :17 ;  5  :2) .  The  con¬ 
nection  between  life  and  walk  is  the  same  as  that  between 
cause  and  effect.  It  was  because  they  lived  in  this  sphere 
that  they  manifested  in  their  conduct  that  which  was 
in  agreement  with  it. 

V.  The  Call  (v.  8) 

Then  follows  the  earnest  entreaty  to  put  aside  all  the 
things  mentioned  and  those  that  are  now  to  be  included 
(v.  8).  The  words  “put  off”  are  in  the  imperative  mood 
and  expressive  of  the  disrobing  of  the  Christian.  It  is 
as  much  as  to  say  that  as  they  have  put  off  the  old  man 
(2:11),  they  were  now  to  put  off  his  clothes.  The  two 
general  lines  mentioned  here  are  sins  of  uncharitableness 
and  sins  of  insincerity.  “Anger”  is  a  sudden  outburst 
of  feeling;  “malice”  means  sheer  malignity;  “slander”  is 
a  false  accusation  (v.  8).  “Shameful”  speaking  seems  to 


Heaven  and  Earth ,  3:5-11 


97 


refer  to  abusive  and  perhaps  impure  language.  They  were 
also  to  avoid  everything  that  is  untrue,  for  lying  was  a 
characteristic  feature  of  their  old  life  (v.  9). 

VI.  The  Reason  (v.  9) 

All  this  was  to  be  done  because  they  had  already  put 
off  the  unregenerate  self  (v.  9)  and  had  put  on  the  new 
life  in  Christ,  which  was  continually  being  renewed  in  the 
likeness  of  God  (v.  10).  This  reference  to  their  old  and 
unconverted  state,  in  contrast  with  their  new  position,  is 
very  impressive  and  demands  thorough  attention.  It  was 
a  contrast  between  self  and  Christ,  between  the  old 
life  and  the  new,  and  every  day  this  union  with  Christ 
was  providing  new  life  and  power.  The  reference  seems 
to  be  clearly  to  the  fact  of  the  original  creation  (Gen. 
1 :26,  27).  Knowledge  is,  of  course,  spiritual  experience, 
which  in  Christ  makes  us  partakers  of  the  divine  nature 
(2  Cor.  4:4;  2  Pet.  1:2-4). 

VII.  The  Result  (v.  11) 

The  word  “cannot”  (v.  11)  shows  the  absolute  impossi¬ 
bility  of  any  of  these  distinctions  being  maintained  in  the 
Christian  life.  The  first  two  are  national,  “Greek  and 
Jew”;  the  second  two  are  religious,  “circumcision  and 
uncircumcision” ;  the  third  two  are  racial,  “Barbarian  and 
Scythian” ;  the  fourth  two  are  natural,  “bondman  and  free¬ 
man.”  To  the  Jew  the  human  race  was  divided  into  two 
classes,  Jews  and  Greeks,  each  of  which  scorned  the  other, 
and  one  writer  remarks  “that  the  Scythians  were  regarded 
as  one  of  the  lowest  types  of  Barbarians.  Cicero  classes 
Scythians  with  Britons.”  The  reference  to  “bond  or  free,” 
is  particularly  important  in  view  of  the  question  of  slavery 
in  the  days  of  St.  Paul,  and  more  particularly  because 
of  the  fact  that  one  of  the  messengers  who  carried  this 
epistle  was  a  runaway  slave  who  was  being  sent  back 

7 


98 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


to  his  master  Philemon.  The  distinction  of  bond  and  free 
is  destroyed  in  Christ,  and  Philemon  was  to  receive  back 
Onesimus  as  a  brother  beloved.  The  fact  that  no  word 
is  spoken  in  the  New  Testament  about  the  emancipation 
of  slaves  is  a  striking  testimony  to  the  essential  truth  of 
oneness  in  Christ,  for  the  abolition  of  slavery  has  grown 
out  of  the  fundamental  truth  of  Christianity  that  all  are 
one  in  Christ. 

As  we  review  this  vitally  important  and  very  practical 
passage,  we  notice:  (1)  the  threefold  call.  They  were 
to  put  to  death  their  members  (v.  5)  ;  they  were  to  put 
off  all  that  was  wrong  in  word  and  deed  (v.  8)  ;  and  they 
were  to  realise  that  they  had  put  on  Christ  (v.  10). 
(2)  This  is  followed  by  a  threefold  reason.  There  was 
the  certainty  of  divine  judgment  on  sin  (v.  6)  ;  they  had 
put  away  the  old  habits  (v.  9)  ;  and  they  were  enjoying 
their  new  position  of  oneness  and  fellowship  with  Christ 
(v.ll). 


CHAPTER  XVIII 
The  Soul’s  Dress,  3:12-17 


~7TER  the  negative  comes  the  positive  in  the  Chris¬ 


tian  life.  Not  only  is  the  believer  to  put  off  the 


evils  of  the  old  life,  he  is  also  to  put  on  the  graces 
of  the  new  life.  In  these  verses  a  number  of  aspects  of 
the  Christian  character  and  conduct  are  presented  for 
practical  realisation* 


I.  The  Spiritual  Attire  (v.  12) 


The  Colossians  are  exhorted  to  clothe  themselves  with 
various  elements  of  the  spiritual  life.  The  figure  of  cloth¬ 
ing  is  found  in  several  other  passages  (Rom.  13  :14).  The 
first  necessity  is  “a  heart  of  compassion,”  because  with 
the  affections  right,  everything  else  should  follow.  Then 
will  come  “kindness,”  the  opposite  of  harshness  and 
severity.  The  next  feature  will  be  “humility,”  the  real 
thing  as  distinct  from  the  unreal  (2:18,  23).  This  will 
express  itself  in  “meekness”  and  “longsuffering,”  the  very 
opposite  of  everything  rude  and  overbearing.  Sir  William 
Ramsay  has  called  attention  to  the  frequency  with  which 
St.  Paul  brings  together  the  two  ideas  of  meekness  and 
lowliness,  as  though  this  were  an  echo  of  our  Lord’s 
well-known  words  (Matt.  11:28-30).  Those  who  are 
humble  in  mind  will  naturally  be  slow  to  resent  wrongs 
and  will  never  for  an  instant  contemplate  revenge. 


II.  The  Special  Robe  (v.  13) 


Keeping  up  the  figure  of  attire,  it  is  noteworthy  that 
so  great  prominence  is  given  to  the  spirit  of  forbearance 
and  forgiveness,  for  both  here  and  elsewhere  this  Chris¬ 
tian  grace  is  made  very  prominent  (Eph.  4:32;  Rom. 


99 


100 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


15  :7).  In  all  matters  of  complaint  and  blame,  this  readi¬ 
ness  to  forgive  should  be  shown,  especially  as  it  is  the 
necessary  outcome  of  Christ’s  forgiveness  of  us. 

III.  The  Protecting  Girdle  (v.  14) 

Again  the  figure  of  clothing  is  used  and  reference  is 
made  to  the  girdle  by  which  the  robes  of  an  Eastern  man 
were  held  together.  It  is  interesting  that  there  are  three 
passages  which  speak  of  the  girdle :  the  girdle  of  truth, 
(Eph.  6:14)  ;  the  girdle  of  peace  (Eph.  4:3)  ;  and  here 
the  girdle  of  love.  Love  is  regarded  as  that  which  holds 
together  the  various  Christian  graces  already  mentioned. 

IV.  The  Deciding  Factor  (v.  15) 

At  this  point  the  reference  is  made  to  “the  peace  of 
Christ,”  which  is  to  be  allowed  in  the  heart  as  the  umpire 
or  arbiter  deciding  and  ruling  the  life.  The  word  “rule” 
is  suggestive  of  that  which  settles  differences,  especially 
where  there  is  any  conflict  of  thoughts  and  feelings.  Under 
such  circumstances  the  peace  of  Christ  is  to  decide.  The 
same  idea  and  practically  the  same  word  is  found  in  2 :18. 
It  may  be  asked  how  peace  is  able  to  do  this,  and  perhaps 
the  explanation  is  that  as  peace  with  God  is  the  result 
of  our  acceptance  of  Christ  (Rom.  5:1),  so  experience 
of  peace  in  the  soul  in  union  with  Christ  and  through 
the  presence  of  God  will  at  once  settle  every  difficulty 
and  show  us  what  is  the  Divine  will.  In  this  case  there 
is  also  a  special  reason  for  this  peace  because  of  the 
essential  unity  of  the  body  of  Christ.  When  we  are 
one  with  Christ  and  one  with  Christians,  there  is  no 
question  as  to  the  power  of  peace  in  our  life. 

V.  The  Inner  Spirit  (v.  15) 

When  the  Apostle  adds,  “and  be  ye  thankful,”  he  means, 
in  Lightfoot’s  suggestive  words,  “to  crown  all,  forget 


The  Soul's  Dress ,  3:12-17 


101 


yourselves  in  thanksgiving  towards  God.”  True  thank¬ 
fulness  is  the  very  essence  of  the  Christian  life,  for  in 
proportion  as  we  appreciate  what  God  has  done  for  us  and 
is  to  us  in  Christ,  we  shall  realise  the  peace  and  power  of 
true  living  (1  Thess.  5:18). 

VI.  The  Abiding  Power  (v.  16) 

The  next  exhortation  refers  to  the  word  of  Christ  which 
we  are  to  allow  to  dwell  in  our  hearts  (Psa.  119:11). 
It  is  not  enough  to  be  taught  the  truth ;  we  must  possess 
it  as  a  present  personal  experience.  It  is  to  be  in  us  as 
abiding  there,  dwelling  in  us  as  in  a  home.  “It  should 
not  be  treated  as  a  stranger  or  slave,  at  a  distance,  but 
received  as  an  intimate  guest.”  It  is  to  abide  in  us  plenti¬ 
fully  in  all  the  variety  of  its  wealth  and  power.  It  is 
also  to  dwell  in  us  “in  all  wisdom,”  so  that  we  may  know 
thereby  how  to  live  and  how  to  help  others  live.  In  pro¬ 
portion  as  we  meditate  on  God’s  Word  and  fill  our  minds 
with  its  truth,  we  shall  have  the  consciousness  of  power 
and  the  means  of  blessing.  Everything  in  the  Christian 
life  is  in  one  way  or  another  associated  with  the  Word 
of  God.  At  this  point  there  is  a  little  difference  of 
punctuation.  The  A.  V.,  followed  by  Lightfoot,  punctu¬ 
ates  with  a  full  stop  after  the  word  “wisdom,”  but  it 
would  seem  more  natural  with  several  great  authorities  to 
make  a  slight  change  and  connect  the  word  with  what 
follows.  This  is  how  the  phrase  will  read  according  to 
the  new  suggestion:  “Let  the  word  of  Christ  dwell  in 
you  richly;  in  all  wisdom  teaching  and  admonishing  one 
another ;  with  psalms  and  hymns  and  spiritual  songs  sing¬ 
ing  with  grace  in  your  hearts  unto  the  Lord.” 

VII.  The  Definite  Duty  (v.  16) 

The  work  of  teaching  and  warning  others  is  very 
important  and  it  naturally  follows  from  the  possession 


102 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


of  Christ’s  word  in  our  hearts  (1:28).  Only  as  that 
word  is  dwelling  in  us  richly  can  we  safely  and  truly 
be  the  means  of  blessing  to  others. 

VIII.  The  Joyous  Attitude  (v.  16) 

The  reference  to  psalms  and  hymns  and  spiritual  songs 
seems  to  indicate  something  of  the  life  of  the  early  Church, 
though  it  is  not  easy  to  distinguish  between  these  three 
forms  of  praise.  Perhaps  the  “psalms”  refers  to  the 
Psalter,  and  “hymns”  to  Christian  compositions,  while  the 
third  word  would  naturally  include  the  other  two,  and 
yet  go  further  in  referring  to  all  forms  of  song,  so  long 
as  they  are  spiritual.  No  mention  is  made  that  these 
songs  are  to  be  referred,  still  less  limited,  to  public 
services,  and  perhaps  there  is  the  idea  of  joyous  fellow¬ 
ship  at  family  and  other  social  gatherings,  suggesting  that 
praise  was  to  be  characteristic  of  the  daily  life  of  the 
believer.  It  is  also  encouraging  to  realise  that  whatever 
we  can  or  cannot  do  with  the  lips,  it  is  still  possible  to 
sing  in  the  heart,  for  if  only  the  inner  life  is  in  tune 
with  God  through  His  grace,  our  whole  being  will  in  one 
way  or  another  manifest  itself  to  God’s  praise  and  glory. 
There  seems  no  doubt  that  this  singing  refers  to  the  soul’s 
personal  fellowship  with  God  and  expresses  the  state  of 
the  heart  when  it  is  alone  with  Christ.  It  means  that 
the  consciousness  of  God’s  grace  fills  the  soul  with  such 
joy  and  peace  that  the  heart  cannot  but  rejoice  before 
God.  This  is  a  fine  test  of  our  spiritual  condition. 

IX.  The  Supreme  Principle  (v.  17) 

Then  from  the  heart  the  thought  extends  outward  to 
the  entire  life  and  everything  is  included  in  the  one  all- 
embracing  principle  of  “doing  all  in  the  name  of  the 
Lord  Jesus”  and  thanking  God  through  Him.  Chris¬ 
tianity  is  a  religion  of  principles,  not  rules,  and  everything 


The  Soul's  Dress,  3:12-17 


103 


is  to  be  done  to  the  glory  of  God  (1  Cor.  10:31).  This 
is  the  mark  of  the  true  follower  of  Christ  who  performs 
his  duties  in  union  with  his  Saviour  and  in  the  conscious¬ 
ness  that  his  life  belongs  to  the  One  who  died  that  he 
might  live.  It  means  the  joy  of  conscious  salvation  and 
conscious  fellowship,  and  is  the  dominating  principle  and 
adequate  inspiration  of  all  true  life  and  service. 

In  this  section  we  have  a  wonderful  picture  of  Chris¬ 
tian  living,  and  it  is  very  significant  that  some  of  the 
verses  are  in  the  Greek  aorist  tense,  which  invariably 
refers  to  a  definite  act,  while  others  are  in  the  present 
tense,  which  always  indicates  a  continuous  action.  Thus 
the  former  speaks  of  the  Christian  position  and  principle, 
and  the  latter  of  the  Christian  process  and  progress;  the 
one  speaks  of  being  “in  Christ,”  and  the  other  “for  Christ.” 

1.  The  Christian  Position.  This  is  described  as  “God’s 
elect,  holy  and  beloved.”  These  three  descriptions  tell  of 
what  the  Christian  is  in  the  sight  of  God.  He  is  chosen 
of  God,  consecrated  for  God  and  loved  by  God,  and  all 
these  come  from  his  union  with  Christ. 

2.  The  Christian  Conduct.  The  thought  of  clothing 
nearly  all  through  this  section  emphasises  the  need  and 
duty  of  a  proper  outward  appearance.  As  clothes  are 
an  indication  of  personality,  so  the  impression  and  expres¬ 
sion  of  these  graces  will  show  “whose  we  are  and  whom 
we  serve.” 

3.  The  Christian  Secret.  This  is  shown  to  be  threefold : 
the  peace  of  Christ,  v.  15;  the  word  of  Christ,  v.  16;  and 
the  name  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  v.  17. 

Thus  our  union  with  Christ  is  not  only  the  basis  of 
our  spiritual  position,  it  is  the  source,  secret,  strength,  and 
satisfaction  of  our  spiritual  state  in  every  detail. 


CHAPTER  XIX 

The  Christian  Home,  3:18-4:1 

THE  Christian  life  is  first  personal  and  then  social, 
and  the  same  principles  are  intended  for  both 
spheres.  At  this  point  the  application  of  the  fore¬ 
going  principles  is  made  to  home  life.  The  Christians 
were  to  “show  piety  at  home”  (Titus  2:5)  and  thereby 
to  prove  the  reality  and  power  of  their  spiritual  life. 
A  man  once  asked,  “Is  so-and-so  a  Christian?”,  and  the 
reply  was  given,  “I  do  not  know,  I  have  never  lived  with 
him.”  Three  instances  are  used,  expressive  of  the  three 
main  social  relationships  of  life. 

I.  Wives  and  Husbands  (vs.  18,  19) 

Wives  are  exhorted  to  submission.  Bishop  Moule 
renders  this  by  “loyalty”  because  this  suggests  better  the 
idea  of  a  wife’s  attitude,  which  is  religious,  and  yet  not 
in  the  strict  sense  of  the  term,  service.  This  appeal  for 
submission  is  in  no  sense  contradictory  of  the  essential 
oneness  of  male  and  female  in  Christ  (Gal.  3  :28),  because 
grace  never  contradicts  nature.  Nor  is  there  anything 
incongruous  or  inappropriate  to  Christian  womanhood, 
because  “order  is  heaven’s  first  law”  in  every  sphere  of 
life  (1  Cor.  11:3).  This  exhortation  is  enforced  by  the 
wife’s  relation  to  Christ.  Because  she  is  in  Christ  she 
is  to  love  as  befits  that  relationship  of  union,  for  those 
who  are  one  with  Him  will  readily  and  gladly  fulfil  His 
word. 

Husbands  are  exhorted  to  love  their  wives.  It  has  often 
been  pointed  out  that  there  is  no  word  expressive  of  the 
opposite  of  submission,  like  “order”  or  “command.”  Sub¬ 
mission,  not  commanding,  is  emphasised.  Love  includes 

104 


The  Christian  Home,  3:18-4:1 


105 


everything  that  a  husband  should  be  to  a  wife,  because 
here,  as  elsewhere  in  the  New  Testament,  love  is  not  a 
mere  feeling  but  a  fact,  not  emotion  but  devotion,  not 
attitude  but  action,  not  sentiment  but  sacrifice.  The 
addition  is  made  that  husbands  are  not  to  be  “bitter” 
against  their  wives,  expressing  the  absence  of  all  selfish¬ 
ness,  temper,  and  lack  of  true  consideration  from  the  life 
of  the  Christian  husband.  Comparison  should  be  made 
between  this  and  the  corresponding  but  much  longer  pas¬ 
sage  in  the  companion  epistle  (Eph.  5:22-33),  where  the 
husband’s  attitude  to  the  wife  is  specially  emphasised  as 
illustrated  by  the  relation  of  Christ  to  the  Church. 

II.  Children  and  Parents  (vs.  20,  21) 

Children  are  exhorted  to  obey  their  parents  in  all  things, 
and  the  reason  is  again  the  highest  possible  one,  expressive 
of  their  relation  to  Christ,  “this  is  well-pleasing  in  the 
Lord.”  The  thought  of  giving  pleasure  to  Christ  is  a 
fine  and  inspiring  reason  for  children  to  obey  and  one 
that  should  make  its  appeal  to  the  experience  of  the 
young. 

Fathers  are  not  to  provoke  their  children,  an  exhorta¬ 
tion  which  probably  includes  all  undue  hardness,  while 
of  course  maintaining  proper  discipline.  Children  may 
easily  lose  heart  by  overmuch  severity,  and  this  condition 
of  soul  easily  leads  to  wrong-doing.  All  who  are  asso¬ 
ciated  with  children  know  how  easy  it  is  to  discourage 
them,  and  how  powerful  in  their  training  and  development 
is  the  element  of  encouragement. 

III.  Servants  and  Masters  (3:22-4:1) 

It  is  striking  that  this  subject  is  dealt  with  far  more 
fully  than  the  other  two.  Lightfoot  and  Rutherford  think 
this  is  due  to  the  special  circumstances  of  Onesimus  being 
sent  back  to  Colosse  to  his  master.  Some  writers  con- 


106 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


sider  that  as  the  relationship  of  master  and  slave  was  not 
so  natural  and  essential  as  the  others,  it  needed  a  fuller 
and  more  urgent  treatment.  Perhaps  both  these  thoughts 
may  be  combined.  There  is  a  sevenfold  appeal  to  the 
slave,  which  is  very  significant,  (a)  He  is  called  upon 
for  obedience  (v.  22).  (b)  This  is  to  be  genuine  obedi¬ 

ence,  coming  out  of  an  undivided  heart  (v.  22)  and  free 
from  all  improper  obsequiousness  (Matt.  6:22).  (c)  It 

was  also  to  be  a  thorough  obedience  (v.  23)  proceeding 
from  the  soul  and  expressive  of  all  the  power  of  the  inner 
being,  (d)  It  was  also  to  be  a  spiritual  obedience  (v.  23), 
as  the  slave  was  conscious  of  the  Lord  as  the  One  to  whom 
his  service  was  really  being  rendered,  (e)  It  was  also  an 
encouraging  obedience  (v.  24)  since  the  slave  was  told 
that  he  would  be  rewarded  by  Christ  who  knew  what  he 
was  doing  and  why  he  was  doing  it.  (f)  It  was  an  obedi¬ 
ence  which  was  really  a  privilege  (v.  24),  for  in  serving 
his  earthly  master  he  was  actually  serving  Christ  as  well. 
This  would  give  a  special  color  to  the  humblest  service 
day  by  day.  (g)  And  yet  it  must  be  a  righteous  obedience, 
because  if  he  did  wrong  there  would  be  judgment,  since 
God  is  no  respecter  of  persons.  While  there  is  no  merit 
attached  to  our  work,  there  is  a  blessed  and  adequate 
reward  of  faithfulness. 

The  master  is  pretty  certainly  included  in  this  reminder 
(v.  25),  because  it  was  possible  for  him  to  do  his  slave  an 
injustice,  and  if  this  should  happen  he  too  would  be 
dealt  with  impartially  by  God  who  is  absolutely  just.  This 
gives  a  special  point  to  the  exhortation  to  the  masters  to 
render  to  their  slaves  what  was  “just  and  equal,”  inasmuch 
as  these  masters  were  themselves  the  servants  of  a  Master 
in  heaven.  It  is  interesting  to  notice  that  while  the  Apostle 
does  not  say  a  word  about  emancipation,  it  was  certain 
to  come,  as  it  actually  did  come,  by  Christian  masters 
doing  that  which  was  “just  and  equal.”  With  such  funda- 


The  Christian  Home ,  3:18-4:1 


107 


mental  principles,  slavery  would  be  thoroughly  and  per¬ 
manently  undermined  and  destroyed. 

1.  The  reality  of  home  life  is  here  specially  emphasised, 
and  it  is  impossible  to  exaggerate  the  value  of  a  true  Chris¬ 
tian  home.  "‘There’s  no  place  like  home.”  It  is  Chris¬ 
tianity,  more  than  any  other  religion,  that  has  made 
possible  pure,  loving  and  unselfish  home  life.  The 
requirements  are  few  and  simple,  as  may  be  seen  from 
this  passage.  No  home  needs  an  elaborate  and  complicated 
set  of  rules  to  realise  its  true  life.  If  only  parents,  chil¬ 
dren,  and  servants  carry  out  what  is  so  clearly  set  forth 
here,  there  will  be  no  question  about  the  peace,  joy,  bles¬ 
sedness  and  power  of  homes  everywhere. 

2.  But  the  most  striking  feature  of  all  is  the  way  in 
which  everything  in  the  home  is  related  to  God.  Seven 
times  over  this  thought  of  everything  being  done  in  His 
sight  is  presented  in  this  passage.  Wives  are  to  submit 
“in  the  Lord”  (v.  18)  ;  children  are  to  obey  “in  the  Lord” 
(v.  20)  ;  servants  are  to  “fear  the  Lord”  (v.  21)  ;  they 
are  to  work  as  “unto  the  Lord”  (v.  23)  ;  they  will  receive 
their  reward  “from  the  Lord”  (v.  24)  ;  they  serve  “the 
Lord  Christ”  (v.  24),  and  masters  are  to  be  true  because 
they,  too,  have  a  “Master  in  heaven”  (4:1).  Thus  salva¬ 
tion,  sanctification,  sympathy,  submission,  and  service  are 
all  associated  with  Christ. 


CHAPTER  XX 


An  Apostle’s  Advice,  4:2-6 


THE  Epistle  draws  to  a  close  and  after  the  doctrinal 
teaching  come  some  personal  counsels,  with  special 
reference  to  practical  life. 

I.  Prayer  (v.  2) 

The  Apostle  exhorts  to  continuance  in  prayer.  The 
word  he  uses  is  singularly  interesting  and  illuminating 
when  looked  at  in  its  use  in  the  New  Testament.  Thus, 
in  writing  to  Rome  St.  Paul  begs  them  to  “continue  instant 
in  prayer”  (Rom.  12:12).  The  earliest  believers  con¬ 
tinued  regularly  in  the  Temple  (Acts  2  :46)  ;  Simon  “con¬ 
tinued  \yith  Philip”  (Acts  8:13)  ;  the  little  boat  was  to 
“wait”  on  our  Lord  “continually”  (Mark  3:9).  These  all 
suggest  persistence  and  perseverance  in  prayer,  what 
Maclaren  helpfully  describes  as  “regular  adherence  as 
well  as  uninterrupted  companionship,”  including  “earnest¬ 
ness  and  continuity.”  This  is  no  doubt  the  meaning  of 
what  is  often  described  as  “the  spirit  of  prayer”  for  as 
someone  has  remarked,  “whatever  may  be  the  attitude  of 
the  body,  the  soul  should  always  be  on  its  knees.” 


II.  Watchfulness  (v.  2) 

The  connection  of  this  with  prayer  is  significant.  It 
is  the  word  employed  by  Christ  in  Gethsemane  to  the 
disciples  (Matt.  26:38,  40),  and  implies  alertness,  avoid¬ 
ing  all  drowsiness  and  sleep.  We  are  never  told  in  the 
New  Testament  what  or  whom  to  watch,  the  word,  though 
in  the  active  voice,  being  invariably  found  without  the 
customary  object.  We  are  not  to  watch  ourselves,  which 
would  be  depressing;  we  are  not  to  watch  Satan,  which 

108 


An  Apostle's  Advice ,  4:2-6 


109 


would  be  distracting ;  we  are  not  to  watch  our  sins,  which 
would  be  disheartening,  but  we  are  to  keep  our  gaze  fixed 
on  Christ,  “looking  off  unto  Jesus”  (Heb.  12:2,  Greek), 
and  as  we  are  occupied  with  Him  we  shall  be  enabled  to 
see  all  that  is  necessary  for  us  to  see.  “In  thy  light  shall 
we  see  light.” 

III.  Thanksgiving  (v.  2) 

Once  again  this  note  of  thankfulness  is  struck,  and  it 
is  impossible  to  exaggerate  its  importance,  especially  as  it 
is  found  so  often  in  the  New  Testament  (3:15;  1:12; 
1  Thess.  5:18;  Eph.  5:4,  20).  This  feature  of  the 
Apostle’s  spiritual  life  is  most  impressive  and  there  is  no 
doubt  that  its  absence  is  invariably  a  cause  of  weakness 
of  faith  and  hope,  for  thanksgiving  will  inevitably  result 
in  “thanksliving.” 

IV.  Intercession  (vs.  3,  4) 

The  appeal  for  prayer  was  intended  to  include  the 
Apostle  as  well  (Eph.  6:19),  and  this  would  prevent  their 
prayers  from  becoming  self-centered.  He  was  an  ambas¬ 
sador  of  the  Gospel  in  bonds  (Phil.  1 :13)  and  he  desired 
that  God  would  give  him  unhindered  opportunity  to  pro¬ 
claim  the  Gospel.  He  wishes  every  hindrance  removed 
so  that  to  all  who  came  “the  mystery  of  Christ  might  be 
made  known.”  He  was  conscious  of  a  supreme  necessity 
for  manifesting  this  Gospel  (1  Cor.  9:16)  and  he  sought 
their  prayers  in  order  that  he  might  be  enabled  to  do  it  as 
he  was  bound  to  do.  There  are  few  ways  of  usefulness 
more  valuable  and  powerful  than  that  of  intercession, 
especially  for  our  fellow-workers  and  for  ministers.  It 
is  a  very  familiar  incident  that  on  one  occasion  Spurgeon 
was  asked  the  secret  of  his  success  and  he  remarked,  “My 
people  pray  for  me.”  In  no  mere  poetical  or  theoretical 
sense,  but  in  blessed  practical  reality,  the  words  of  Tenny- 


110 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


son  are  true,  “More  things  are  wrought  by  prayer  than 
this  world  dreams  of.” 


V.  Conduct  (v.  5) 

Now  the  counsels  turn  to  the  outward  life  of  the  Chris¬ 
tians,  with  special  reference  to  those  who  are  not  yet 
believers,  and  the  Apostle  urges  them  to  “walk  in  wisdom” 
and  to  “redeem  the  time.”  The  description  of  the  uncon¬ 
verted  as  “them  that  are  without”  (1  Cor.  5:12)  in  con¬ 
trast  with  them  that  are  within,  is  at  once  significant  and 
sad,  because  the  unbeliever  is  not  only  outside  the  Church, 
but  he  is  without  God,  without  Christ,  without  real  joy, 
without  power,  and,  of  course,  without  hope  (Eph.  2:12). 
There  is  scarcely  anything  more  impressive  than  this 
simple  yet  wonderfully  significant  description,  “them  that 
are  without.”  Outside  a  house  is  often  to  be  in  darkness, 
in  danger,  in  storm,  in  loneliness,  and  when  people  are 
outside  Christ  they  are  without  fellowship,  in  constant 
peril,  and  in  the  unutterable  darkness  of  sin.  This  phrase, 
“them  that  are  without”  should  often  come  home  to  “them 
that  are  within,”  and  make  its  solemn  and  searching  appeal 
for  prayer  and  effort.  “To  walk  in  wisdom”  means  to 
live  a  life  of  conduct  in  such  a  way  as  to  impress  and  win 
“them  that  are  without.”  Some  one  has  said  that  “the 
Christian  is  the  world’s  Bible,  and  sometimes  they  will 
read  no  other.”  There  is  no  doubt  that  Christians  are 
continually  being  watched  by  those  that  are  not  yet  fol¬ 
lowers  of  Christ  in  order  to  see  whether  there  is  any 
reality  is  our  religion.  The  late  Bishop  of  Durham  makes 
an  impressive  point  on  this  passage  in  his  valuable  vol¬ 
ume,  Colossian  Studies.  He  tells  of  one  who  was  “totally 
sceptical,”  and  while  not  unwilling  to  listen  to  Christian 
witness,  he  was  stumbled  by  the  listless  air  of  a  Christian 
congregation  in  Church,  and  the  man  asked  himself,  “Can 
these  Christians  possess  any  secret  better  than  my  reason 


An  Apostle's  Advice ,  4:2-6 


111 


gives  me?”  (p.  261).  “Redeeming  the  time”  means  in 
the  original  “buying  up  the  opportunity,”  which  suggests 
letting  no  opportunities  be  lost,  using  every  occasion  wisely 
to  impress  and  if  possible  lead  to  Christ  “them  that  are 
without.”  As  Lightfoot,  referring  to  the  corresponding 
passage  in  Ephesians  (5:16),  says,  “The  prevailing  evil 
of  the  times  makes  the  opportunities  for  good  more 
precious.” 

VI.  Speech  (v.  4) 

Their  words,  as  well  as  their  conduct,  need  to  be  true 
to  Christ.  Their  speech  is  not  merely  to  be  pleasant  but 
marked  by  Divine  grace,  and  the  “salt”  means  such  a 
spiritual  flavour  that  it  will  never  be  flat,  but  forceful 
and  telling,  wholesome,  free  from  all  harm,  and  capable 
of  inspiring  others  with  moral  and  spiritual  blessing 
(1  Pet.  3:15).  When  a  Christian  bears  testimony  with 
brightness,  and  yet  without  lightness,  his  words  will  be 
a  blessing  to  those  around  and  a  testimony  to  the  God 
of  all  grace. 

As  this  section  is  reviewed  we  see  in  it  something  of 
the  completeness  of  the  Christian  life.  It  has  its  relation 
to  God  (v.  2)  and  its  relation  to  man,  in  prayer,  word, 
and  deed.  This  is  the  meaning  of  the  word  “consistent,” 
which  implies  a  life  that  stands  firmly  and  well  all  around, 
with  no  weakness  or  failure  such  as  the  unconverted  might 
use  as  a  reason  for  continuing  to  neglect  and  reject  Chris¬ 
tianity.  A  life  that  is  true  and  strong,  blessed  and  useful 
in  every  part,  will  do  more  than  anything  else  to  glorify 
God  and  win  others  to  Him  (Matt.  5  :16). 

This  is  only  possible  by  the  grace  of  God  in  answer 
to  prayer  and  trust.  It  was  an  apostle  who  said,  “by  the 
grace  of  God  I  am  what  I  am”  (1  Cor.  15:10),  and 
the  same  grace  is  available  for  us  if  only  we  are  ready 
to  look  up  to  God  and  yield  ourselves  to  Him  in  whole¬ 
hearted  surrender  and  sincere  obedience  (2  Cor.  9:8). 


* 


CHAPTER  XXI 

An  Apostle  and  His  Friends,  4:7-17 

THE  pictures  of  St.  Paul’s  friends  are  among  the 
most  helpful  parts  of  his  Epistles.  Those  who 
have  read  that  delightful  book,  The  Companions  of 
St.  Paul ,  by  Dean  Howson,  will  know  what  can  be  derived 
from  a  study  of  the  various  references  to  those  who  were 
associated  with  the  Apostle  in  his  life  and  work.  Only 
brief  hints  are  given,  as  a  rule,  but  these  are  sufficient 
to  indicate  the  characters  of  the  people,  and  what  St. 
Paul  thought  of  them.  Here  we  have  a  galaxy  of  workers 
which  we  shall  do  well  to  consider  one  by  one. 

I.  Tychicus  (vs.  7,  8) 

He  is  mentioned  five  times  in  the  New  Testament,  first 
in  Acts  20:4,  5,  then  here  and  in  Ephesians,  and  last  of 
all  in  Titus  3:12,  and  2  Tim.  4:12.  In  all  these  we  see 
his  close  association  with  the  Apostle,  and  it  is  no  wonder 
that  the  Apostle  can  speak  of  him  as  he  does  in  the  three¬ 
fold  way  (v.  7),  of  (a)  affection,  “beloved  brother”; 
(b)  approbation,  “faithful  minister”;  and  (c)  association, 
“fellow-servant.”  Nor  is  it  a  surprise  that  Tychicus  should 
have  been  sent  by  St.  Paul  for  the  twofold  purpose  of 
obtaining  information  about  the  Colossian  Christians,  and 
of  encouraging  and  cheering  them  in  their  Christian  life. 
The  one  thought  that  seems  to  stand  out  more  than  any¬ 
thing  else  from  Tychicus  is  that  of  faithfulness.  Probably 
he  was  not  brilliant  or  outstanding,  but  he  was  dependable, 
and  this  above  all  else  was  what  the  Apostle  needed  under 
such  circumstances.  The  same  thing  is  true  of  all  our 
Christian  service,  for  God  does  not  seek  for  success  or 
marvellous  power,  but  for  quiet,  humble,  genuine  faith- 

112 


An  Apostle  and  His  Friends,  4:7-17  113 

fulness  of  heart  and  life.  “Good  and  faithful  servant” 
(Matt.  25:21,  23),  “Be  thou  faithful  unto  death” 
(Rev.  2:10). 

II.  Onesimus  (v.  9) 

We  know  that  he  was  a  runaway  slave  of  Philemon 
and  was  being  sent  back  to  Colosse,  and  it  seems  as 
though  before  his  flight  he  had  not  been  a  Christian,  but 
that  in  going  to  Rome  he  was  led  to  Christ  through 
the  Apostle.  Now,  as  he  was  being  sent  back  to  his  old 
home,  it  was  necessary  for  someone  to  be  ready  to  give 
evidence  of  the  change  which  had  taken  place.  This  St. 
Paul  does,  both  here  and  in  the  Epistle  to  Philemon. 
Nothing  could  be  finer  than  the  testimony  afforded,  and 
nothing  could  be  more  delicate  than  the  precise  way  in 
which  Onesimus  is  presented  to  the  Christians  in  Colosse. 
He  is  called  “the  faithful  and  beloved  brother,”  words 
that  are  almost  exactly  identical  with  those  used  of 
Tychicus  (v.  7),  and  Epaphras  (1 :7).  The  former  slave 
in  becoming  a  Christian  had  become  a  “faithful  and 
beloved  brother.”  Christianity  has  a  marvellous  power  to 
restore  and  transform  lives. 

III.  Aristarchus  (v.  10) 

He  was  a  Hebrew  Christian  (v.  11)  of  Thessalonica 

in  Macedonia  (Acts  19 :29)  and  one  of  Paul’s  companions 

on  his  journey.  He  then  accompanied  St.  Paul  on  his 

voyage  as  a  prisoner  (Acts  27: 2),  and  is  here  called  St. 

Paul’s  “fellow-prisoner.”  This  must  mean  either  that  he 

shared  the  captivity  or  had  been  apprehended  for  some 

reason  unknown  to  us.  In  any  case,  he  is  a  sufferer  with 

the  Apostle  and  reminds  us  of  the  way  in  which  God’s 

will  may  be  done.  Activity  is  only  one  way  of  serving 

God;  for  “they  also  serve  who  only  stand  and  wait.”  It 

must  have  been  as  hard  for  Aristarchus  as  we  know  it 
8 


114 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


was  for  St.  Paul  to  be  a  prisoner,  and  thereby  prevented 
from  doing  active  work  for  Christ,  but  if  only  we  live 
in  the  will  of  God,  our  circumstances  can  be  made  sub¬ 
servient  to  His  purposes.  An  old  woman,  full  of  bustle 
and  activity,  was  laid  aside,  and  her  friends  wondered  how 
she  could  possibly  bear  the  Inaction  after  her  constant 
restless  service.  When  they  asked  about  this,  she  replied, 
“When  I  was  able  to  do  it  the  Lord  said,  ‘Betty,  go  here/ 
and  ‘Betty,  go  there/  but  now  He  says,  ‘Betty,  lie  still 
and  cough/  ” 

IV.  Mark  (v.  10) 

This  is  a  reference  to  the  well-known  author  of  our 
second  Gospel,  the  cousin  of  Barnabas,  and  the  companion 
of  Barnabas  and  Paul  on  their  first  missionary  journey 
(Acts  13).  It  is  particularly  interesting  to  notice  this 
allusion  to  Mark,  because  it  implies  that  the  estrange¬ 
ment  was  at  an  end.  Opinions  differ  as  to  which  was 
right,  Barnabas  in  his  partiality,  or  Paul  in  his  severity 
(Acts  15:37-39).  Perhaps  we  may  say  that  both  were 
right,  for  it  may  well  have  been  that  St.  Paul’s  strictness 
made  Mark  realise  what  was  necessary,  while  the  love 
of  Barnabas  gave  him  another  opportunity  of  recovering 
himself  from  his  former  weakness.  It  is  clear  that  Mark 
was  a  genuine  help  both  at  this  time  and  subsequently, 
to  the  Apostle  (2  Tim.  4:11).  It  is  also  thought  that 
the  tone  of  St.  Paul’s  reference  to  Barnabas  after  their 
separation  is  marked  by  genuine  affection  (1  Cor.  9:6; 
Gal.  2:1,  9). 

V.  Justus  (v.  11) 

Nothing  more  is  known  of  him  than  is  told  us  here, 
though  it  is  interesting  to  realise  that  one  of  his  names 
is  that  of  our  Lord  Himself.  He,  and  the  other  two, 
Aristarchus  and  Mark,  were  Jewish  Christians,  and  had 


An  Apostle  and  His  Friends ,  4:7-17  115 

been  a  real  comfort  to  the  Apostle  Paul.  It  would  seem 
from  this  that  all  the  other  Jewish  Christians  in  Rome 
were  separated  from  him  and  were  not  a  comfort.  Per¬ 
haps  this  is  what  he  meant  when  he  referred  to  his  afflic¬ 
tion  (Phil.  1 : 15-17).  The  circumstances  in  Rome  among 
the  Christians  at  that  time  must  have  made  St.  Paul  feel 
still  more  grateful  for  the  encouragement  and  cheer  which 
came  from  these  three  brethren  who  in  their  fellowship 
had  been  a  solace  to  him. 

VI.  Epaphras  (vs.  12,  13) 

During  the  three  years  of  St.  Paul’s  stay  at  Ephesus 
(Acts  20:31),  Epaphras  seems  to  have  been  led  to  Christ, 
and  to  have  carried  the  Gospel  to  Colosse,  where  the 
Apostle  had  never  been  (Col.  2:1).  Then  Epaphras  came 
to  St.  Paul  in  Rome  with  news  of  the  Church  and  was 
sent  back  with  this  Epistle.  The  description  of  the  man 
is  very  striking  and  will  call  for  more  detailed  attention 
in  our  next  chapter,  but  we  may  notice  now  the  Apostle’s 
testimony  to  him  (v.  13),  that  he  was  continually  thinking 
of  and  working  for  the  Christians,  even  though  he  was 
far  away  from  them  (v.  13).  The  word  rendered  “labour” 
really  means  “pain”  and  implies  both  keen  desire  and  great 
effort.  The  cities  of  Laodicea  and  Hierapolis  were  in  the 
neighborhood  of  Colosse  and  Epaphras  had  evidently  been 
the  evangelist  in  all  three  places. 

VII.  Luke  (v.  14) 

This  is  of  course  the  author  of  our  third  Gospel  and 
The  Acts.  He  first  appears  in  St.  Paul’s  company  at 
Troas  (Acts  16:10)  and  went  with  the  Apostle  to  Jeru¬ 
salem  (Acts  20:5,  6;  21:1,  17),  and  also  to  Rome 
(Acts  27:1).  He  was  with  him  when  this  Epistle  was 
written,  and  it  is  beautiful  to  observe  the  words  of  the 
great  warrior  for  Christ  just  before  he  was  beheaded; 


116 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


“only  Luke  is  with  me”  (2  Tim.  4:11).  It  is  usually 
thought  that  the  way  in  which  Luke  is  here  distinguished 
from  the  Jewish  Christians  implies  that  he  was  a  Gentile, 
and,  if  so,  he  is  the  only  New  Testament  writer  who  was 
not  a  Jew.  Thus  two  of  the  four  evangelists,  Mark  and 
Luke,  are  among  the  friends  of  St.  Paul.  Luke  is  called 
“the  beloved  physician,”  and  we  can  well  understand  the 
comfort  of  his  presence  and  knowledge  to  the  Apostle, 
especially  at  this  time. 

VIII.  Demas  (v.  14) 

It  is  impressive  and  perhaps  significant  that  nothing  is 
said  about  Demas  as  in  the  case  of  the  other  fellow- 
workers.  Possibly  already  there  was  a  danger  of  what 
afterwards  took  place,  “Demas  hath  forsaken  me,  having 
loved  this  present  world”  (2  Tim.  4:10).  The  contrast 
between  Mark  and  Demas  is  striking ;  Mark  returned  but 
Demas  seems  not  to  have  done  so.  The  contrast  between 
Luke  and  Demas,  as  they  are  mentioned  together  here,  is 
equally  impressive,  the  one  suggesting  faithfulness  and 
loyalty,  the  other  unfaithfulness  and  weakness. 

IX.  Nymphas  (v.  15) 

There  are  two  readings,  one  referring  to  a  man’s  name 
(Nymphas)  and  the  other  to  a  woman’s  (Nympha). 
Whichever  is  correct,  the  reference  is  to  a  Christian  home 
in  Laodicea,  and  the  brethren  there  are  greeted  with 
“Nymphas.”  The  reference  to  a  private  house  as  the 
ordinary  place  of  gathering  for  the  early  Christians,  is 
an  interesting  illustration  of  the  simplicity  of  the  earliest 
Church  fellowship.  In  Colosse,  the  Church  met  in  the 
house  of  Philip.  In  Ephesus,  in  the  house  of  Aquila  and 
Priscilla  (1  Cor.  16:19),  and  when  these  two  removed  to 
Rome  they  did  exactly  the  same  there  as  they  had  done 
in  Ephesus  (Rom.  16:5).  All  this  is  at  once  a  testimony 


An  Apostle  and  His  Friends ,  4:7-17  117 

to  the  value  of  Christian  homes  and  the  blessedness  of 
Christian  fellowship,  and  the  more  we  can  have  of  both 
of  these,  the  better  it  will  be  for  the  reality  and  progress 
of  Christian  living. 

At  this  point  it  is  interesting  to  notice  that  the  present 
Epistle  was  intended  to  be  read  in  the  Church  of  Laodicea, 
while  the  Epistle  sent  to  that  Church  was  to  be  read  in 
Colosse.  It  is  usually  thought  the  latter  refers  to 
our  Epistle  to  the  Ephesians,  which  was  pretty  certainly 
a  circular  Epistle  intended  for  several  Churches.  This 
reciprocal  use  of  the  Epistles  in  various  Churches  forms 
the  germ  of  that  acceptance  and  use  of  writings  from 
Apostolic  sources  by  various  Churches  which  reached  its 
culmination  in  our  New  Testament. 

X.  Archippus  (v.  17) 

No  one  knows  anything  more  of  Archippus  than  what 
is  found  here,  though  one  scholar  suggests  the  probability 
of  his  being  a  son  of  Philemon  (Philem.  2).  Most  writers 
think  that  the  admonition  given  here  implies  some  laxity 
of  duty,  though  this  is  of  course  altogether  uncertain. 
In  any  case  it  is  an  appeal  to  watchfulness  and  thorough¬ 
ness  in  the  ministry  which  he  had  received  from  the  Lord. 

XI.  Paul  (v.  18) 

It  is  impossible  to  close  this  account  of  St.  Paul's  friends 
without  thinking  of  the  Apostle  himself,  for  his  refer¬ 
ences  to  others  are  a  genuine  reflection  of  his  own  heart 
and  life,  and  of  those  things  which  he  felt  the  most 
essential  features  of  the  Christian  life.  All  through  the 
Epistle  we  find  references  to  him  which  reveal  a  good  deal 
of  his  own  life  in  relation  to  God  (1 :3,  24,  25;  2:1,  5; 
4:3,  4).  Whether,  therefore,  in  preaching  or  praying,  or 
practice,  the  Apostle  is  a  wonderful  example  for  us  and 
we  shall  do  well  to  follow  him,  even  as  he  followed  Christ. 


CHAPTER  XXII 
Secrets  of  Living,  4:12 

IT  is  at  least  suggestive,  and  it  may  be  significant,  that 
there  is  an  almost  entire  absence  of  appeal  in  St. 
Paul’s  Epistles  to  evangelise,  only  one  such  exhorta¬ 
tion  being  found  (2  Tim.  4:5).  But  there  is  a  constant 
emphasis  on  the  Christian  life  of  holiness  and  the  neces¬ 
sity  of  realising  our  full  privileges  in  Christ.  There  may 
be  some  connection  between  the  absence  of  the  appeal  and 
the  presence  of  the  emphasis,  for  if  the  inner  life  is  right, 
soul-winning  and  evangelism  will  be  the  natural  and  nec¬ 
essary  outcome.  Certainly,  as  water  never  rises  above  its 
level,  so  our  service  in  its  quality,  reality,  vitality  and 
energy  will  never  be  higher  than  the  genuineness  of  our 
fellowship  with  God.  It  is  this  that  makes  the  reference 
to  Epaphras  so  important,  for  it  reveals  what  was  evi¬ 
dently  the  outstanding  feature  of  his  Christian  life. 

I.  The  Fact 

The  greatest  service  we  can  render  to  others  is  to  pray 
for  them.  Forbes  Robinson,  of  Cambridge,  used  to  say 
that  instead  of  calling  on  a  man  or  inviting  a  man  to  call 
on  him,  he  found  it  more  profitable  to  spend  a  half-hour 
in  prayer  for  the  man.  Abraham’s  prayer  for  Lot,  Christ’s 
prayer  for  Peter,  Paul’s  prayers  for  the  Churches — all 
show  the  value  and  importance  of  intercession.  How  this 
brings  blessing  is  of  course  a  mystery,  but  it  is  clear  from 
Scripture  that  we  can  help  by  prayer,  and  love  without 
prayer  lacks  its  deepest  force.  Epaphras  had  the  Colos- 
sian  Christians  ever  in  mind  as  he  went  before  God  in 
prayer. 


118 


Secrets  of  Living,  4:12 


119 


II.  The  Foundation 

The  reason  why  he  was  able  to  pray  was  that  he  was 
“a  servant  of  Christ  Jesus.”  Christians  alone  can  really 
pray  because  prayers  are  only  possible  when  based  on 
the  acceptance  of  the  promises  of  God.  It  is  one  of  the 
proofs  of  the  new  life,  “Behold,  he  prayeth”  (Acts  9:11). 
This  is  a  service  that  all  can  render.  Epaphras  could 
not  write  the  wonderful  Epistles  of  St.  Paul,  but  he  could 
pray,  and  this  we  know  he  did.  Let  us  therefore  be 
encouraged  in  this  special  and  blessed  work.  There  are 
many  things  outside  the  power  of  ordinary  Christian 
people,  and  great  position,  wide  influence,  outstand¬ 
ing  ability  may  be  lacking  to  almost  all  of  us,  but  the 
humblest  and  least  significant  Christian  can  pray,  and  as 
“prayer  moves  the  Hand  that  moves  the  world,”  perhaps 
the  greatest  power  we  can  exert  is  that  which  comes 
through  prayer. 

III.  The  Nature 

Three  things  are  mentioned  in  connection  with  the 
prayer  of  Epaphras.  It  was  earnest,  “striving”  for  them. 
This  is  the  word  found  in  connection  with  the  Apostle’s 
own  prayers  ( 1 :29 ;  2:1).  It  is  akin  to  the  word  “agony” 
which  is  associated  with  Gethsemane.  There  is  nothing 
in  this  of  our  modern  idea  of  pain  or  anguish,  but  there 
is  assuredly  in  it  the  idea  of  the  athlete  wrestling  and 
putting  forth  all  his  power.  It  suggests  at  once  the  cost  of 
prayer  and  also  the  fact  that  Satan  is  continually  hindering 
God’s  people  from  praying.  Be  it  ours  to  put  all  our  effort 
into  prayer  and  thereby  to  manifest  spiritual  earnestness. 
Epaphras  was  also  persistent  in  his  prayers,  “always’’ 
striving.  He  was  not  content  with  asking  once,  but  bore 
these  Colossian  Christians  continually  before  God.  Our 
Lord  said  that  “men  ought  always  to  pray  and  never  to 


120 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


lose  heart”  (Luke  18:1,  Greek).  The  definiteness  of 
his  prayer  must  also  be  noticed,  “always  striving  for  you.” 
He  knew  what  he  wanted  and  he  knew  those  for  whom  he 
was  praying,  and  so  he  asked  with  clearness  and  force. 
This  is  the  prayer  that  always  prevails. 

IV.  The  Purpose 

Three  things  sum  up  the  desire  of  Epaphras  for  his 
friends  in  Colosse  and  they  represent  some  of  the  essential 
elements  of  the  Christian  character. 

1.  He  prayed  that  they  might  be  steadfast,  “that  ye 
may  stand.”  We  need,  as  doubtless  they  did,  the  stead¬ 
fastness  of  resistance  against  error  and  of  persistence  in 
work.  Many  people  are  tempted  and  fall  because  they 
are  not  able  to  withstand  in  the  evil  day,  and  many  others 
fail  to  continue  in  the  Christian  life  because  they  lack 
that  perseverance  which  enables  them,  “having  done  all, 
to  stand”  (Eph.  6:13). 

2.  He  also  desired  them  to  be  ripe  and  mature  in  the 
Christian  life,  “that  ye  may  stand  perfect.”  The  word 
“perfect”  is  contrasted  with  the  babe  in  another  of  St. 
Paul’s  Epistles  (1  Cor.  3:1),  where  the  thought  is  of 
unripeness  and  immaturity.  There  is  also  the  solemn 
thought  of  the  second  childhood  of  those  who  had  gone 
back  from  their  Christian  position  (Heb.  5:12,  13).  This 
may  almost  be  called  overripeness.  The  true  Christian 
will  be  “perfect”  in  the  sense  of  spiritually  mature,  real¬ 
ising  the  “end”  (Greek)  or  object  for  which  he  is  a 
follower  of  Christ.  It  will  mean  clearness  of  spiritual 
perception,  tenderness  of  spiritual  sympathy,  charm  of 
spiritual  attractiveness,  and  fruitfulness  of  spiritual  influ¬ 
ence.  It  is  very  important  to  bear  in  mind  that  the  word 
“perfect”  never  means  sinlessness  in  the  New  Testament. 

3.  Another  element  of  the  Christian  life  for  which  he 
prayed  was  what  may  be  called  assurance,  “fully  assured 


Secrets  of  Living,  4:12 


121 


in  all  the  will  of  God.”  The  thought  seems  to  be  identical 
with,  or  else  akin  to  certainty,  and  the  word  is  found  in 
three  connections  in  the  New  Testament — the  fulness  or 
full  assurance  of  faith  (Heb.  10:22)  ;  the  fulness  or  full 
assurance  of  hope  (Heb.  6:11) ;  and  the  fulness  or  full 
assurance  of  understanding  (Col.  2:2).  It  means  that 
the  Christian  is  intended  to  be  quite  sure  of  God’s  will 
in  regard  to  his  acceptance,  his  fellowship,  and  his  equip¬ 
ment.  He  knows  and  is  certain  of  his  position  in  Christ, 
he  knows  and  rejoices  in  his  communion  with  Christ,  he 
knows  and  is  certain  of  his  provision  from  Christ. 

As  we  consider  what  Epaphras  was  doing,  we  see  that 
in  many  ways  intercession  is  the  greatest  necessity  and 
the  most  blessed  work  we  can  do.  Whether  our  prayers 
are  for  individuals  or  for  communities  of  Christians,  we 
should  “pray,  always  pray.”  It  is  also  our  bounden  duty, 
for  as  “priests”  unto  God  we  ought  to  make  the  fullest 
possible  use  of  this  ministry  of  intercession. 

And  if  any  one  should  think  that  this  is  difficult,  the 
Apostle  reminds  us  of  the  way  in  which  Epaphras  accom¬ 
plished  his  work  by  himself  living  “in  the  will  of  God.” 
For  us  the  Word  of  God  is  the  expression  of  His  will, 
and  with  daily  meditation,  daily  application,  daily  trust, 
daily  obedience,  we  shall  become  mighty  in  prayer  because 
“mighty  in  the  Scriptures.”  The  Word  of  God  is  the 
fuel  of  prayer  and  will  prompt,  inspire,  and  encourage 
us  to  petition  and  intercession.  In  particular,  it  will  reveal 
to  us  the  wonderful  intercession  of  Christ  above  (Rom. 
8:34)  and  the  equally  wonderful  intercession  of  the  Holy 
Spirit  within  (Rom.  8:26),  and  because  thus  linked  with 
the  throne  through  Christ  and  the  Holy  Spirit  we  shall 
be  “bound  by  gold  chains  about  the  feet  of  God.” 


CHAPTER  XXIII 
A  Look  Back 


AFTER  going  through  an  Epistle  like  this  and  ponder- 
/-%  ing  every  word  and  every  phrase  in  its  order,  it 
is  spiritually  helpful  to  review  it  as  a  whole  and 
to  think  of  the  great  themes  that  occupied  the  Apostle’s 
thought.  The  circumstances  of  the  Colossian  Church  are 
of  course  somewhat  different  from  those  of  today,  and 
yet  the  Epistle  has  so  much  of  permanent  truth  that  even 
its  definite  and  direct  appeals  to  Colosse  may  be  used 
by  us. 

The  main  theme  of  the  Epistle  from  beginning  to  end 
is  the  Person  and  Work  of  our  Lord.  Arising  out  of 
this  it  is  possible  to  see  what  he  thinks  (a)  of  the  Chris¬ 
tian  life,  whether  of  the  individual  or  of  the  community, 

(b)  the  Christian  service  which  has  to  be  rendered,  and 

(c)  the  dangers  that  beset  God’s  people.  It  would  be 
helpful  to  go  through  this  brief  Epistle  along  these  four 
lines.  (1)  What  does  it  say  of  Christ?  (2)  What  does 
it  say  of  the  Christian  life?  (3)  What  does  it  say  of 
Christian  work?  (4)  What  does  it  say  of  Christian  perils? 
Under  these  main  topics,  practically  all  the  teaching  of 
the  Epistle  can  be  included.  Or  we  may  analyse  it  afresh 
in  this  way:  (1)  The  Prayer,  1:9-14;  (2)  The  Person 
of  Christ,  1:15-29;  (3)  The  Power  of  Christ,  2:1-23; 
(4)  The  Practice  of  the  Christian  life,  3:1-17;  (5)  The 
Proof  of  the  Christian  life,  3:18-4:6.  Let  us  see  by  way 
of  summing  up,  what  the  teaching  means  for  us  at  the 
present  time. 

1.  Christianity  Means  Holiness 

All  through  the  Epistle  this  theme  is  presented  in  vari¬ 
ous  ways.  The  Apostle’s  thanks  and  prayer  (1:3-13) 

122 


A  Look  Back 


123 


are  concerned  with  this  important  truth,  while  the  practical 
part  of  the  Epistle  (3:5-4:6)  emphasises  the  need  and 
duty  of  holiness  in  heart  and  life,  individual,  home,  and 
society.  Nothing  is  more  important  or  prominent  in  this 
Epistle,  as  indeed  all  through  St.  Paul’s  writings,  than 
the  emphasis  placed  on  Christian  holiness. 

II.  Holiness  is  Based  on  Redemption 

It  is  impossible  to  be  holy  without  having  our  sins  for¬ 
given,  and  this  means  that  only  as  we  are  redeemed  by 
grace  can  we  be  what  God  intends  us  to  be.  This  is 
another  theme  of  the  Epistle  which,  while  emphasised  in 
certain  parts  (1 :20-2:3),  is  implied  or  stated  from  begin¬ 
ning  to  end.  Redemption  alone  is  the  fount  of  holiness. 

III.  Redemption  is  Founded  on  the  Deity  of  Christ 

The  work  of  Christ  must  of  necessity  spring  out  of 
His  Person,  and  only  a  Divine  Person  (1 : 1 5-19)  can  do 
a  redemptive  work.  The  thought  of  Christ  being  any¬ 
thing  less  than  God  would  make  redemption  absolutely 
impossible.  It  is  here  that  all  modern  systems  fail  which 
do  not  emphasise  the  Godhead  of  Christ,  for  without  His 
Deity  there  can  be  no  salvation. 

IV.  Christ  is  Available  for  All 

The  Colossian  Christians  were  in  serious  danger  of 
interposing  between  themselves  and  God  mediators  which 
could  not  possibly  meet  the  need,  and  would  in  reality 
tend  to  shut  out  God  from  their  lives.  The  Apostle  flings 
the  door  wide  open  and  says  that  “every  man”  without 
exception  (1:28)  can  approach  God  without  any  human 
mediation  (2:18,  19).  This  is  the  glory  of  Christianity, 
that  it  is  a  religion  of  direct  access  to  God,  for  through 
Christ  we  have  our  introduction  by  one  Spirit  to  the 
Father  (Eph.  2:18). 


124 


Christ  Pre-eminent 


V.  The  Characteristic  of  the  Christian  Life  is 

Union  with  Christ 

The  way  in  which  the  Apostle  emphasises  the  Head¬ 
ship  of  Christ  shows  what  this  means  (2:10,  19),  and 
the  thought  of  believers  being  “in  Christ”  or  “in  the  Lord” 
that  runs  from  beginning  to  end  is  noteworthy  because 
of  its  clear  implication  of  our  spiritual  union  with  Christ. 
The  saints  and  faithful  brethren  are  “in  Christ”  (1:2); 
our  faith  is  in  Christ  Jesus  (1 :4)  ;  redemption  is  ours  in 
Christ  (1:14);  all  things  hold  together  in  Him  (1:17); 
in  Him  all  fulness  dwells  (1:19);  every  man  is  to  be 
presented  mature  in  Christ  (1:28);  all  Christians  are 
made  full  in  Him  (2:10);  wives,  husbands,  children, 
servants,  and  masters  are  all  in  one  way  or  another 
appealed  to  because  of  their  relationship  to  Christ,  because 
they  are  “in  the  Lord”  (3 :18— 4 :1 )  ;  and  St.  Paul’s  friends 
have  the  same  blessed  spiritual  position  (4:7,  12,  17). 
Thus  we  see  how  the  believer  is  united  with  Christ  in 
His  death  (2:20)  and  resurrection  (3:1),  and  is  now 
living  above  with  a  life  hid  with  Christ  in  God  (3:1-3). 

VI.  This  is  the  Adequate  Protection  Against 

All  Error 

The  Colossian  Church  was  faced  with  two  great  dangers 
(2:4-23),  one  doctrinal  and  the  other  practical,  and  the 
Apostle  points  out  that  both  perils  can  be  met  and  more 
than  met  by  the  reality  and  power  of  their  union  with 
Christ.  So  is  it  today,  for  whatsoever  may  be  the  danger 
of  the  Christian  man  or  the  Christian  Church,  union  and 
communion  with  Christ,  who  is  at  once  Divine  and  human, 
redemptive  and  sanctifying,  is  the  complete  protection 
in  the  face  of  every  conceivable  peril. 


A  Look  Back 


125 


VII.  Thus  Everything  Culminates  in  the 

Grace  of  God 

The  closing  prayer  “grace  be  with  you”  (4:18)  is  only 
an  echo  of  what  is  found  all  through  the  Epistle.  The 
Colossian  Christians  had  heard  and  had  known  “the  grace 
of  God  in  truth”  (1 :6)  from  the  very  first  of  their  Chris¬ 
tian  life  and  this  grace  had  continued  with  them  every 
step  of  the  way,  reminding  them  of  what  God  was  able 
to  be  and  do  as  they  realised  their  union  with  Him.  It 
is  our  privilege  similarly  to  realise  the  adequacy,  suffi¬ 
ciency,  abundance  and  power  of  the  grace  of  God  in  all 
things  in  our  life,  until  that  day  comes  when  grace  will 
be  manifested  in  glory  and  we  live  forever  “  to  the  praise 
of  the  glory  of  His  grace”  (Eph.  1:6). 


THE  WORKS  OF 

DR.  W.  H.  GRIFFITH 
THOMAS 

PUBLISHED  BY 

THE  BIBLE  INSTITUTE  COLPORTAGE 

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